TOKYO BABYLON Vol. 2 Translated by Hecate Written by Nanase Drawn by Makona Apapa Typed by Mene Copyright to CLAMP Vol. 2 Dream WOMAN1 I’ve been noticing a lot of unsavory young men hanging around the neighborhood lately… WOMAN2 I have a hard time sleeping at night. I hear them cruising around in their cars and on their motorcycles late at night. Oh, hello Mitsuki! MITSUKI Hello! WOMAN2 Haven’t you heard? WOMAN1 What about? * WOMAN2 They say that a young girl from this neighborhood was raped recently… * WOMAN1 How horrid! In any case, you didn’t read about that sort of thing in the local paper! That’s the kind of crime where the victim tends to hide! WOMAN2 Between us, who’d want to brag about that sort of thing… VOICES Do you know? About what? * VOICES It seems like a young girl from this neighborhood was raped recently by a group of thugs…Really? But the press hasn’t mentioned it…The victim must have refused to testify. Between us, who would want to brag about something like that? * MITSUKI: I have to forget everything…All those voices talking in my head! I want to go to sleep…and dream forever…sleep deeply… CLAMP Tokyo Bablon vol. 2 Dream * CLAMP November 11th Sogano, Kyoto. Family seat of the Sumeragi Clan. OBASAN (grandma) Have you been working lately? SUBARU Yes…I…I…can’t complain. OBASAN: With regards to that Tokyo Tower affair…I received a thank-you call from the Minister of Public Health. SUBARU: Oh? OBASAN I learned that a young man accompanied you that night… * OBASAN Is he your friend? SUBARU: Yes…uh, no…how do I say this… OBASAN No matter, you needn’t justify yourself! However, I did not admit that an amature risked fouling up your operation by his mere presence! You were lucky that time! But think you you would feel if something had happened to that young man for which you were responsible! SUBARU She has no idea what kind of powers Seishiro has… OBASAN Subaru, you are the 13th head of our family! The Sumeragi family has protected Japan since the dawn of time with our spiritual powers, and must continue to practice exorcism in its younger generations. As the 12th head of the family, and as your grandmother, I want you to know that your spiritual powers are both particular and extraordinary. Of all the members of the family, you are without a doubt the strongest! * OBASAN One thing still worries me, Subaru…you look a little too calm… SUBARU Oh, well…If I announce that I have a relationship with a member of the Sakurazukamori family, she’ll never let up! OBASAN Do you know of the exsistance of the Sakurazukamori family? SUBARU What?! What family?! OBASAN What’s going on? Is that anyway to comport yourself in the Tea Ceremony Room? SUBARU Sorry… OBASAN I asked you if you know of the exsistance of the Sakurazukamoris? They are a family of assassins who use magic after murdering. The Sumeragis do not know the basis of their powers. Yesterday I received a visit from the Ministerial Cabinet Inspectore, who is investigating the suspicious death of a statesman. He suspects that a member of the Sakurazukamori family is behind the murder. SUBARU Sakurazukamori… OBASAN Subaru, know that the members of this family hide under the guise of simple exorcists…I promise you, you will surely meet one of them! What is it? SUBARU Say Grandma…do you think that everyone named Sakurazuka is a member of the Sakurazukamori family? * OBASAN No. That is impossible! You know very well that Sakurazuka is a very common name in our country…The Sakurazukamoris are different… SUBARU Yes…that’s true! I just knew that Seishiro couldn’t be an assassin… OBASAN When I was a child, we said that Sakurazukamori was only given to one person! SUBARU: Only one? Why do they say it’s a family now? OBASAN You don’t get bored living alone? SUBARU No, not at all! OBASAN This is the first time you’ve lived far from Tokyo. It is reassuring to know that you live in the same building as your sister Hokuto…Promise me that you’ll take good care of yourself, I know how fragile you are! SUBARU I promise! OBASAN And above all, remember never to take your gloves off in front of anyone-not even your sister! Do you understand me? SUBARU Yes…. * SUBARU Where… * SUBARU Where am I? Hey you! Who are you? MITSUKI Hee hee hee! Hee hee… SUBARU Wait! MITSUKI Hee hee! Hee Hee! Ha ha! * MITSUKI Do you know why I don’t like you Subaru? Because you’re not like the others! * SUBARU It was just a dream… MITSUKI Do you know why I don’t like you Subaru? Because you’re not like the others! SUBARU I remember a little still… * CLAMP November 12th Kabuki-Cho, Shinjuku SUBARU Who’s there?! HOKUTO Ha ha ha! I can’t belive that the great “master” of yin and yang can’t sense the presence of his own sister from ten centimeters away! SUBARU Hokuto… SEISHIRO Good morning, Subaru! I didn’t know you slept in ravishing polka-dot pajamas! HOKUTO So, what do you have to say for yourself? You know very well that sleep is no excuse for letting strangers into your bed! SUBARU But you’re not strangers! * HOKUTO You don’t seem to realize that if a stranger glides into your bed, poor Seishiro will be cuckolded!! And don’t tell me that you forgot to take your gloves off before you went to bed again! SUBARU I used to take them off just before I got into bed, but since Hokuto has taken to bursting into my room at anytime, day or night, I prefere to keep them on… HOKUTO Come on, Subaru, don’t make a face! I’ve felt really lonely since we left Kyoto. You know, I’m really glad that we’re neighbors! SUBARU Yes, me too, but I’d like it better if you’d knock before bursting into my room… HOKUTO Oh la la! Chill out, it’s not the end of the world! SEISHIRO Hokuto, I congratulate you on your cooking, it’s really good! HOKUTO Thanks Seishiro! You know…I’m practicing for later life! SEISHIRO For later life…why? HOKUTO Because I intend to become the family matriarch! SEISHIRO Wow, that’s the best! HOKUTO Tell me, Subaru…have you thought about going to visit Grandma? SUBARU Yes, I went yesterday/ HOKUTO How is she? SUBARU Fine… HOKUTO: Did you tell her about Seishiro? SUBARU Uh…not yet… HOKUTO I don’t want to be in your shoes when she finds out that her grandson, head of the Sumeragis, is going out with a Sakurazukamori! SEISHIRO Hmm…this miso soup is absolutely fabulous! * HOKUTO I wonder how old Grandma is? I feel like she hasn’t aged since we were kids, she’s always so shriveled up! SUBARU Hokuto, please! HOKUTO Oh, I almost forgot! I got a fax for you, from one of the most illustrious families in our provence! SUBARU Thanks! HOKUTO So? I hope it’s a job! SUBARU In effect! SEISHIRO A fax? Bravo, I see that our Master of Yin and Yang is modernizing! HOKUTO No, you don’t understand, Subaru needs everything explained in black and white in order to get it. No flashes of lightening for him! SUBARU Hokuto, if you go to school could you tell my teacher I’ll be absent today? HOKUTO Of course! SEISHIRO Where are you going? SUBARU I’m going to Ebisu SEISHIRO When do you have to leave? SUBARU I have to be there in an hour! SEISHIRO Fine. I’ll go with you! SUBARU NO, thank you, but I wouldn’t want to put you in any trouble… SEISHIRO Don’t fret, I have time! HOKUTO Go on, it’s over! You two always fighting about the same thing! SUBARU But- SEISHIRO If you keep refusing, I’ll get angry! What do they call a boy who chauffers his fiancée around? I think it’s a nice guy…or a great guy… HOKUTO Or maybe a suck up… * SEISHIRO What’s up, something wrong? SUBARU No, no, everything’s fine! SEISHIRO Did you have a nightmare recently? SUBARU Yes….why? SEISHIRO When we came in this morning you were tossing around! SUBARU I dreamed of…something that happened a long time ago… SEISHIRO Long ago? SUBARU I dreamed about a little girl who went to elementary school with me… * TOKYO BABYLON vol. 4 DREAM Cont. SUBARU I thought I had completely forgotten it, until she appeared in my dream this morning…she told me that she didn’t like me…because I was not like the others. If only she knew…how much she hurt me… * SUBARU I thought I had forgotten, but for all those years that phrase stayed in the back of my heart…”not like the others”… SEISHIRO Some people think that dreams permit humans to rid themselves of their fears…and their anguish. Often, after having a nightmare, we’re happy to wake up, or on the contrary, we can feel upset after having a good dream. I think that dreams are like security valves for our spirits. SUBARU So then why do some people only have…nightmares? SEISHIRO Don’t worry, Subaru, I know that your dreams are not just dreams…you have a spiritual power that allows you to go beyond your borders…Like a sort of premonitive dream! What’s wrong? Do you feel ill? SUBARU No, I’m fine! Somewhere in the back of me, I’ve always known that I wasn’t…like the others! * SEISHIRO Tell me, Subaru, what does it mean for you “not like the others”? SUBARU Beg your pardon? SEISHIRO Everyone has their own personality. You should be glad you’re different! SUBARU I know, but this difference has caused me to suffer so much… SEISHIRO I think this girl was simply your first love! SUBARU What?! SEISHIRO That nightmare reminded your spirit of a past suffering! I’m glad we talked about this, because thanks to this discussion, a wound in your heart has healed! SUBARU Thanks for bringing me! SEISHIRO Subaru, you want to go get some muffins at Ikebukuro when you’re done? SUBARU But…but I don’t know how long I’ll be, and I don’w want to make you wait! SEISHIRO Don’t worry about me, I don’t have to be at the clinic until after lunch! SUBARU But- SEISHIRO Know that it is a pleasure for me to wait for you! Good luck! If only you’d let me go with, I could help you! * CLAMP Name: Miki Kaburagi. Sex: Female. Age: 16. Her father died when she was 12. She lives with her mother at 804Grand Hights in Ebisu. On July 14th of last year, she lay down in her room for a nap after coming home from school…she has not awoken. SUBARU She has not awoken. Hello, I’m looking for Miss Miki Kaburagi’s room. NURSE She’s at…the end of the hall! SUBARU Thanks again! CLAMP When her mother got home from work, she was already asleep. NURSES Gosh, he’s cute! CLAMP That morning, she left for school as usual…no one knows what happened on her way home. Medicine remains impotent in this strange occurance… * SUBARU I can’t feel her spiritual force…we seem to be alone in this room…What! It can’t be?! This girl is… * MITSUKI I don’t like you, Subaru. Because…you’re not like the others! SUBARU What a coincidence…and to think that I dreamed of her this morning! She was right…I’m really not like the others! * SUBARU She’s so thin that it’s painful…but she has been sleeping for four months! How she has changed since our childhood. Ahem! I have to concentrate! It’s strange. I can’t find her spirit…I have to contact her in order to find out why she’s sleeping! But how? The only way is to detach my spirit from my body and slide into hers… * SUBARU It would be so simple if she only remembered me…Nouboua Kyasha Kalabhaya Om Arikya Mariborhi Showaha. But she must have forgotten me… Nouboua Kyasha Kyarabahaya o….m….a…..ri….kya….Maribhori showaha noubho akyasha kyrabhaya….. * SUBARU Om Arikya Mariborhi Showaha noubho akyasha kyrabhaya * SUBARU Om Arikya Mariborhi Showaha. That wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, after all…Her spirit didn’t resist me! That was odd…Now I have to find her consciousness…there… * * SUBARU There, that’s Mitsuki! But…it’s me? She still remembers me! Mitsuki! She’s gone! She must be having another dream! BOY Give me that dog! SUBARU He’s a stray, he doesn’t belong to you! BOY That’s our dog, and we can mistreat it if we want to! * BOY Give it to me! You took it!! * * SUBARU I got the impression that Mitsuki is remembering things that happened long ago…Don’t go! * MITSUKI Hee hee hee! SUBARU Wait!! MITSUKI Do you know why I don’t like you, Subaru? * MITSUKI Because you’re not like the others! SUBARU Mitsuki! MITSUKI Who are you? SUBARU I know this will be hard for you to believe, but…I’m Subaru Sumeragi! MITSUKI Subaru? SUBARU You’ve been asleep for four months, and if you don’t wake up, you’ll die… MITSUKI Liar! You’re not Subaru! You’re lying! This is Subaru! SUBARU No, that child is- MITSUKI LIAR! SUBARU Blood?! * SUBARU Mitsuki… MITSUKI Subaru is here! * SUBARU Please, listen to me! All this is just a DREAM! You’re not a little girl anymore, you’re sixteen…MITSUKI!! MITSUKI Why can’t I live in a dream? I like it here! I don’t want to go back to the real world! * SUBARU Om. MITSUKI Why…why does everyone want to hurt me? SUBARU No…this is all in her imagination. If I destroy anything…her spirit will always be wounded! SEISHIRO Subaru, you really are the nicest boy I know! * SEISHIRO Go! Go help Subaru! I don’t think there are any beings more capable of such devotion in this world! * SUBARU Mitsuki refuses to wake up…what can I do? MITSUKI! * * MITSUKI STOP IT! I don’t want to see any more…. * MITSUKI I’m scared! I always thought that it only happened to other people…I never imagined it would happen to me! None of them had any pity…Help! None of them… * MITSUKI They said that they just wanted to have a little fun…Help me!! I would rather have died… * MITSUKI I tried so hard to forget….I imagined my mother’s horror without end when she learned what had happened to me. Her shame would surely be so great that we would have to move! That is why I decided not to talk about it! But it was too late, the news was already going around the neighborhood…I saw the mocking smiles that followed me…and I understood that they knew all of what had happened. That is why I begged…begged never to awaken again…never again. * MITSUKI It’s so easy to destroy a young girl’s life in an instant. Suddenly it all stopped. There didn’t seem to be a present…nor a future. Never forget that this sort of thing happens everyday…somewhere. * MITSUKI That day, I decided to stop time and live in a dream. I imagined that nothing had happened…and no one had ever heard…To dream forever…From that moment on, the only person who appeared to me in this dream, was you, Subaru! Today I am a high schooler…but since elementary school, I have never stopped thinking of you! I liked you, because you were kind and smiling! My little girl pride forbade me to tell you. I preferred to tell you that I didn’t like you! I would have said anything for you to notice me! It’s true that you weren’t a boy like the others! In my heart, you were superior! You have suffered because of me… * SUBARU Surely not as much as you! No one could have suspected what had happened to you…but you must understand that doctors can’t do anything if you don’t help them. Imagine your mother’s pain, she thinks she’ll never see you again! MITSUKI Subaru… SUBARU No one has the power to turn back time. What happened is in the past…you must forget it! * SUBARU Think of the future…you are so young…you have so much life before you! Your mother will surely be upset when she learns what happened…but I’m sure that she’ll be even more upset….if you never wake up! Please…for those who love you and are waiting for you…Awake! * SUBARU Mitsuki, remember what you just told me! It’s so easy and cruel to destroy a person’s future and happiness! In an instant! And that is what you’re doing to your mother by not waking up! To your mother…and to yourself! MITSUKI Subaru…my mother must be so sad….Subaru…. SUBARU No…don’t cry! MITSUKI Subaru…I never stopped calling for you! I knew that you were the only one who could stop this nightmare! SUBARU I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner… MITSUKI Subaru, I have something to tell you… * MITSUKI I’m sorry I hurt you when we were little… SUBARU Thank you! * SUBARU Hello! MITSUKI Hello Subaru! I’m glad to wake up…and finally see the real Subaru! * SUBARU I still don’t understand…How did Shiki get in her dream?? SEISHIRO I knew this would happen!! A young girl in love with my Subaru! THE END TOKYO BABLYON Vol. 2 Cont. Annex/Smile GUY Hey! You!…What’re you doing all by yourself? I bet you’re a middle schooler! Or maybe a highshcooler? HOKUTO Are you civil servants? GUYS Huh? HOKUTO Do you own an apartment? A luxury car? Or maybe you have a bankbook? If not…I wouldn’t advise you to talk to me again!!’ * GIRL Help! MAN1 Keep calm! GIRL Help! Help me! MAN2 Don’t try and get away! Huh?! But- MAN1 What do you want? * HOKUTO I think there’s been a mistake here… MAN2 But this girl is- HOKUTO I’d advise you not to insist upon it! MAN2 But- HOKUTO Evil are the men who abuse women! MAN2 Listen- * MAN1 No, please!! Listen- HOKUTO Come on, quickly! * HOKUTO You ok? You’re not hurt? It’s dangerous for a pretty girl like you to be walking around a big city alone at night! Come on, I’ll walk you home! Can you speak- GIRL I speak Japanese! * MAN2 Hey!! Look! There they are! HOKUTO Oh no! Them again! GIRL Thanks… * GIRL I am a stranger…why did you defend me? HOKUTO What does it mean to you, to be a ‘stranger’? GIRL What? HOKUTO It doesn’t matter to me that you’re from another country! I don’t know enough to guess where you’re from, but I suppose you’re not Japanese, right? Well, no matter what, you’re not a stranger to me! GIRL You don’t want to know where I’m from? HOKUTO I’d rather let you tell me if you want to…Just because of how we met doesn’t give me the right to question you! Some situations are embarrassing enough…I don’t want to lose your respect because of simple curiosity! * GIRL Lose…my respect? HOKUTO But if you need to talk, I’ll listen to you….Sometimes its easier to confide in a complete stranger than in your best friend…so feel free! GIRL You’re really a wonderful girl! HOKUTO Yeah, I know…that’s what everyone tells me! GIRL Me…I work in a bar. A man-only bar…. HOKUTO The “cabaret club”? GIRL My country is very far away from here. I came to Tokyo a little over two years ago. There are seven of us at home, but my father is ill and my mother can’t tend to all the needs of the family by herself- * GIRL Most of the people in my country are unemployed, I thought that I’d easily find work in a big city like Tokyo. But when I got to the Shinjuku Station, I realized that it wasn’t that easy. I didn’t speak Japanese, I had no money, and I was starving…That’s why I took the first job I was offered! HOKUTO You speak great Japanese! GIRL My clients taught me! HOKUTO You’re lucky your clients didn’t have accents! GIRL It wasn’t always easy. Some clients were odious but I dealt with them because I needed the money! But… HOKUTO What? GIRL I was afraid of being stopped by the police! I don’t have a visa. If the police find me…they’ll force me to go back! The men who were chasing me just now were policemen! HOKUTO Don’t tell me I fought cops… GIRL There was a raid on the cabaret club. When I saw them, I ran! I know I’m in an unusual situation but I have no choice! If they send me back to my country…I won’t be able to make any more money for my family! * GIRL Tokyo is a magical city…Everything is for sale. Money can get food, clothes, or a house…In my country, there’s none of that, even for people who have the means. I make very little money, but I’ve already been able to buy dozens of things that I never could have had in my country. But I also had two things…that I lost in coming here… HOKUTO What? GIRL My friends. * GIRL Over there, I was really poor, but I had lots of friends…They didn’t have any money either. When I left, they all cried! Sometimes I think that if I died here…none of them would be here to miss me! HOKUTO What’s the second thing? GIRL My smile. No one pays attention here…my mother, my friends, and my neighbors told me that just one of my smiles put them in a good mood! Now I have no reason to smile. * GIRL The bar that I work in is so dark that no one sees my face…Thank you. This is the first time anyone’s ever listened to me so patiently. I always felt like people would run if I said a word to them! I thought that only the language would allow me to intergrate myself here. That’s why I tried so hard to speak and understand Japanese. * GIRL There was something else that I didn’t understand that was vital to my intergration here… An understanding of the Japanese spirit. Despite my grasp of the language, I never could have real friends. Those with whom we can just exchange a simple smile… * MAN2 Look! There they are! GIRL Please, don’t stay here! You’re already in enough trouble because of me tonight! HOKUTO There’s something you should never forget…Don’t let those men get you. After all, they’re only doing their job. They have a hard one, that everyone doing dislikes! We even accuse them of being paid in our taxes! But they too have taxes! GIRL Quick! HOKUTO No, stay with me! * GIRL Come on! HOKUTO Om * HOKUTO Sorry! GIRL But…those were cops! HOKUTO So what? We didn’t do anything bad! GIRL Why did you help me? * HOKUTO Because I want to be your friend. Come on, I promise you’ll never get bored with me! I guess that what I did to the police wasn’t right…but…my friends are my top priority! GIRL But…I’m just a stranger, and… HOKUTO I already told you that the word “stranger” means nothing to me! GIRL I work at the Cabaret Club… HOKUTO I really think you’ve got a lot going for you. The hardest jobs in the world are the service ones. Not only the kind you do, but also doctors, teachers and even ideals. Anyone who doesn’t understand that doesn’t understand life! * GIRL Do you pity me? HOKUTO No. Despite the circumstances, we don’t know each other very well. Pity can be a cruel sentiment. I will never let myself feel it towards you! We can’t judge a life based on one event! * HOKUTO Japanese or stranger…who cares! We are human above all. * HOKUTO Do you want to know who I am? Do you want to be my friend? GIRL Yes! HOKUTO From now on…we’re friends! I’m really glad to be your first friend in Tokyo. No, don’t cry…smile! We may not ever see each other again, you have to work… And so do I! Know that I’ll always think of you and worry that you’re ok! Please, smile for me! I want to take that image of you with me. * HOKUTO Smile for me! * HOKUTO You know, I haven’t told you my name…I’m Hokuto Sumeragi. GIRL My name is…. THE END TOKYO BABYLON GOODIES! Subaru means “One of the seven seals”/”Pleides” Hokuto means “North Star” Seishiro means “Price of the Star”/ “White Star” About the Authors: from the French Edition Translated by Mene (Sorry this was early and hard to do!) Many CLAMP fans begin to understand after reading RG Veda and Tokyo Babylon the reasons why this group’s manga has such important and renowned success. Japan, an industrialized place, suffers the same ills that the United States and Europe do: economic crisises, unemployment, and possessing valuable objects, egoism and fear of others. Japan’s capacity to be able to return to an art of life impregnated with the ancients knowledge for thinking about the future. The masters of this ancient knowledge are often active in the country and gives Tokyo the trappings of the past. CLAMP, a group of young modern girls, express the importance of returning to the old traditions upon the new generation, they continue to help with informative programs –Cyber Culture Oblige-. CLAMP works very hard at their attempt to make the world more human, more divine. For the French editors, we have looked often for the hidden meanings and feelings in their manga. We have discovered plenty of solid cultural knowledge, including the religion of all the continents. CLAMP uses symbolic images and figures from all these peoples in their stories. You can also find the best wonderful usage of mantras from many different schools of exorcism. CLAMP, a charmed group, are they also magicians?