MaruMAːMini-minisːnightnightoyasumi

Night-Night - Oyasumi‏

Short Story: Takabayashi Tomo Illustration: Matsumoto Temari

"It's quiet isn't it?"

He said to Conrad while looking out the window behind his shoulder.

It was the kind of night when you could hear the cracking sounds of frost. They were spending the time before bedtime peacefully in Yuuri's bedroom, and they were neither speaking a lot nor completely quiet as they each read a different book.

Time passed as they sat comfortably on spacious chairs, occasionally leaving a book on the desk, drinking warm tea and having short conversations.

Even so... what's up with the way he's drinking? Yuuri was holding the cup with his right hand, using the palm of his left hand to hold bottom, and tilting both hands slowly as he drank. It was as if this was the first time he was drinking tea like an adult. And although it is the Japanese way of drinking tea, it was the cutest thing in the world.

"When there's no TV, it really is quiet."

"..... Are you uncomfortable?"

Conrad asked that question although he knew perfectly well what the reply would be. Yuuri quickly started waving both palms of his hands to reply negatively.

"No, I'm not uncomfortable at all! I don't hate doing things like reading books together. It's soothing. But I just didn't think that nights could be this quiet without a TV."

"TV?"

"Ah, look, I'm talking about that box with moving pictures in it....but, wait. Since you visited Earth, don't you already know this?"

"Although I know what it is, I was wondering if you were one of those kids who's always watching TV."

"I wouldn't say I watch enough TV to be called that."

He closed a mazoku children's book and sipped his tea. It's not good that you drink so much before bedtime. Lord Weller smiled bitterly.

"But without even noticing, the TV ends up being on until it's time to sleep. Even if no one is really watching. It's not ECO at all, that makes me feel guilty."

"What kind of shows do you watch?"

"Me? Stuff like baseball replays, sports news, major league replays...."

"I see, it sounds fun. It's all baseball stuff, right?"

"That's not exactly.... well, yeah I guess you're right. What shows did you watch when you were on Earth? Around that time when I was born, there were TVs everywhere, right?"

"That's right."

Leaving the closed book on his lap, Conrad folded his arms deep in thought. He never really relied a lot on TV, but that NEWS thing was quite convenient. It had a lot information about the world he was living in at the time. It wouldn't lose against a pigeon.

"Other than the news, I used to like documentaries. Watching sea turtles hatch from an egg and such. Did you know? Sea turtles cry when they lay eggs."

"Yeah, that's common knowledge in Japan."

"Is that so? Since I didn't know about it, without realizing, I started crying too because I remembered that pain..."

"Remembered that pain? Of... of laying eggs!? Have you ever laid eggs!?"

"No, I was remembering the time when I had my stomach cut open. It wasn't an egg, but my intestines were sticking out. Although now it's just material for a light joke."

"Don't laugh! Don't laugh about it like it's a light joke!"

"I also watched stuff like animation and children's shows. Like the one with those animal shaped dolls that speak. It helped me learn many words."

"Ah, the Muppets."

Yuuri broke into a smile while imagining something. He probably pictured Conrad chanting the alphabet sitting before the TV. Actually there was even dancing to match the pictures. Embarrassing songs and dancing techniques.... He quickly gave up those 'Exercise with Big Brother' thoughts.

"But children shows are great. There are aliens in costume or anime characters that use words that are easy to understand. And the songs are really easy to remember! I see... it would have been great if I could have learned English like that. Then I'd be able to speak English beautifully and correctly like you... By the way, are there educational TV shows in Shin Makoku? Ah, since there's no TV there can't be any TV shows. Then, what about educational... theater? Is there anything besides Poison Lady Anissina?

"There are some things, but not many. Currently the focus is on books."

"I see... I was thinking I wanted to show something to Greta. I mean, there might be a demand for it, right? It would be a good idea to try and make some. In that case, maybe we should propose this idea to Anissina-san."

"Before asking her about it, your majesty...oops."

Yuuri made an unhappy face being called majesty at that time of the day. Because it wasn't working hours.

"Yuuri, you should make a prototype. Greta and the children from Shin Makoku will surely be rejoiced."

"Me? No way, no way. There's no way I can do that, Conrad! Doing something like that is difficult. It must have an entertaining content and use easy words. And I don't know how to make animation, I can't even draw. And when it comes to making Muppets, surely Gwen would be much better at it.... but there's that. Speaking while moving around, that really old way of entertaining children, and giving them something to watch. A shadow play! That would be a show for children, right?

"Shadow play? You mean like this?"

Remembering what he saw that time when he went to a Boys' Scout camp, Conrad combined his fingers into complicated shapes.

"Hyena"

".... Don't people usually start with a dog face or a crab?... Or rather, I don't think that's the kind of character that kids would like."

"Then, a bald eagle."

"... A bald ... I don't know if that looks bald. But... can't we try and find a friendlier character? It's fine if it's an original character."

"For example? Can you please show me one? And make it an original one if possible."

His reply came in the form of a slightly difficult request, something he realized by Yuuri's troubled look as he was staring at his hands. Conrad felt bad about it. It was time to change the subject to try and not hurt Yuuri's feelings.

At that moment, he looked up. Yuuri was holding a lamp with his left hand.

"GLOVE!"

"It should be character, right?"

"Well, it could be Glove-man or something"

".....'Glove-man'..."

At that moment, Lord Weller's soul of an educator manifested itself. This wasn't Günter but himself and that feeling surprised him. He held Yuuri's fingers to get him ready to make a shadow.

"Listen, okay? I will teach you how to make a masterpiece. This is a top level shadow that will turn you into a shadow MASTER, the type that make people call you the KING of shadows!"

"I don't want to become such a king."

"And it's not just your hands, you'll have to use your feet too. In a way, you'll make a shadow with your entire body. In other words, this is the technique of SHADOW PLAY."

"W-w-w-w-w-w-w-what!? What PLAY is that!? It hurts! It really hurts!! I can't do it! There's no way I can make that pose! What did you do Conrad?! Why are you looking so serious all of a sudden!?"

After about ten minutes, Wolfram entered the room carrying his pillow, and started yelling as one would expect. What he saw was two people with their arms entwined and Yuuri's legs lying on Conrad's shoulders.

Yuuri was the one who got the worst part of the scolding, but when Conrad was asked what they were doing, he promptly replied:

"Yoga"

Return to MA Series