Phoenix Pear

Syo: Uwa, this is damn spicy! There's wasabi in this, I'm sure of it. Hiiiiiiii water, water!

Tokiya: Here you go. I don't think you should be crying over something so trivial.

Syo: I-I'm not...crying! .....Ugh, it went up my nose...

Tokiya: I believe there is some wasabi in there, but aren't you exaggerating? Do you hate wasabi that much?

Syo: *gulpgulp*......Phew. Say what you want, but I don't think I'll ever get used to it.

Tokiya: You mean you've put effort into eating it?

Syo: Well, yeah. You never know when you'll get a wasabi-related punishment game.

Tokiya: That's true. You do end up in a lot of variety shows. It wouldn't be surprising if something like that happened to you. But isn't it good whether or not you can eat it? (T/N: This line is probably a bit off.) Not wanting to eat wasabi like a child, you come off as cute so it's a weakness with many benefits.

Syo: Don't say "child" or "cute"! It might not have anything to do with you, but...

Tokiya: That was a compliment. Did I offend you?

Syo: Of course! That's not a compliment at all... And if I really wanted to, even I...

Tokiya: You can do it if you really wanted to? Then why don't we test that right now? I'll give you my portion. Try eating it.

Syo: GEH!!

---

Masato: I'm sorry for making you come with me.

Tokiya: No, don't worry about. It was interesting to see instruments from around the world. I knew that the exhibition was open, but I probably wouldn't have gone if I was alone. Thank you for inviting me. We have plenty of common interests and we don't run out of topics to talk about either. I had a lot of fun.

Masato: That's a relief. It looks like we were feeling the same way! But I was surprised when you played so beautifully at the Instrument Testing Corner. That wasn't at the level of just testing. You were playing all sorts of instruments like a professional, after all.

Tokiya: I got caught in the moment... I'm a little embarrassed. And when I returned to my senses, a crowd had formed asking for an encore... But your piano playing was wonderful as well. How you adapt your playing style to other instruments. It was such a phantasmagoric sound. It must be the result of all your practice. I felt your heart in it and I should learn from you.

Masato: If it's alright with you, we can arrange meetings like this for a while. I can make you tea too.

Tokiya: That would be great!

Tokiya: (What is this feeling...? How nice would it have been if Hijirikawa were my roommate? Far different from a certain someone who plays guitar in the middle of the night.)

Masato: (It's strange, how calm I feel. Is this what it means to get along with people? Very different from a certain someone who paints his walls red.)

Tokiya: .........

Masato: .........

Cecil: Let's study some difficult kanji today. Read the following kanji. Hmmhmm.

Question 1: 薔薇

Cecil: I know this one! Bara(rose). But writing it looks difficult. Can't I write it in hiragana or katakana?

Question 2: 儚い

Cecil: "I...yume...i" ? Or "I...mu..i"? But this looks too small for the katakana "I"... Mumu...

Camus: Cat. Stop your foolish muttering. You'll make me stupid too.

Cecil: Wha-! That's awful. I wasn't talking that loudly.

Camus: For one thing, you should know that there is no such word "Imui." How many years have you been staying in Japan?

Cecil: It's true that I haven't ever heard that word.

Camus: Well, I suppose a word like this would have nothing to do with an ignorant commoner like you. You wouldn't run into any problems even if you couldn't read it.

Cecil: Then can you read it, Camus?

Camus: Of course. It's read "Hakanai."

Cecil: "Hakanai"? You mean there's no grave? (お墓がないということですか？ Hakanai actually means "fleeting" or "transient," but Cecil split it into "haka" and "nai" which literally mean "grave" and "no" or "none.")