Chapter Four: Hatsune - The First Birdsong of the New Year
"The doctors are happy that you agreed to go to the common room, Murasaki." The man was not paying attention to Nurse Kurumae at all - he stared at bland paintings, or cracks in the tiled floor. Sometimes he was talkative, sometimes not. Perhaps a more meditative person would say that peaceful silence was the only way to absorb the outside world fully, but Nurse Kurumae was not a meditative person. She quickened her pace slightly so Murasaki was forced to keep up with the sharp click-click of her shoes.
"You'd enjoy the common room. There's a large television where some people watch movies, or if you like, there are games to try - cards, chess, Go, things like that. Some of the women do needlepoint." Last night, Nurse Kurumae had apparently set something off in Murasaki - a new excitement.
"People play Go here?" Murasaki had asked, suddenly interested.
"Ahh. some do. Do you know how to play?" At that point Murasaki's expression faltered back into the usual sadness.
"I. I don't know." The nurse smiled brightly, happy for any sign of change.
"This is the common room - would you like to use the television?" Murasaki looked at the black screen tentatively. Nurse Kurumae handed the remote control to him and began to leave, as she has other things to do. Murasaki simply turned it over in his hands. "Don't you know how to use that?" Murasaki shook his head.
It was strange how many gaps there were in Murasaki's mind. He obviously knew how to read, and had on occasion quoted old-fashioned poetry. He seemed to know a little history as well, probably more than the nurse could verify the truth of. But then he didn't seem to understand everyday things like having to plug in lamps to make them work, or the buttons on the remote control. Even normal clothing seemed unfamiliar to him. Curiously, he knew what a computer was, but didn't know what to make of the programs.
"It's like this, you see?" She pushed the "on" button and the large screen flickered to life. "Then you use these to change the station." She then handed the device to Murasaki, who began experimenting with the channel select button. A cooking show, some kind of sports program and a drama all flashed by. He hovered a moment on a commercial for canned drinks and some kind of nature program on fish, but quickly flipped through the dizzying number of programs. Unexpectedly, he dropped the remote to the floor with a plasticky clatter and nearly threw his body at the screen.
"No, no!" he muttered. "Before this one!" His fingertips brushed the face of some idol singer in agitation. Nurse Kurumae retrieved the remote, preparing to lecture the patient on taking better care of hospital property but decided to change the channel instead. The previous show was some kind of board game. It seemed to satisfy Murasaki, though, who watched it with rapt attention.
"That's go, isn't it?" she began, but the patient barely heard her. The faces of the players were not seen, only an aerial view of two gnarled, disembodied hands elegantly placing stones on a grid. A few minutes went by in which nothing at all happened. Murasaki's hand slowly moved towards an empty space on the board. A few moments later, a hand placed a black stone there. Excitement shining on his face, he touched another place on the TV screen. Soon after, white followed his move. This continued for perhaps five minutes until white abruptly rescinded his hand, to Murasaki's disappointment.
"White resigns," came the announcer's voice. The winner is Ogata 10- Dan, who will now advance to the next round of the tournament. Ogata- sensei is favored in the next match, but Kurata 6-Dan has been unexpectedly difficult to beat." The camera then panned though the audience to a female announcer who gave a recap of the game. Nurse Kurumae initially thought that Murasaki was interested in the woman - his face was so close to the screen. However, it seemed to be a member of the audience behind the announcer that caught his attention - a young boy with half-bleached hair engaged in an animated discussion with a black-haired person of the same height. Murasaki's hand lay on the television screen as if touching the cool glass could somehow bring him into the world trapped inside it. When the screen shifted to a colorful advertisement, he sadly allowed his hand to drop.
"Nurse Kurumae?" he asked softly.
"Yes?"
"I want. to play that game." Nurse Kurumae thought for a few moments, and then went to the supply closet. Perhaps if she could get Murasaki to play a game, she could get back to her rounds faster. It was only a cheap plastic goban, but it would be good enough.
"Akiyoshi-san?" she called. A thin, nervous-looking man, perhaps a few years older than her strange patient, set aside a thick novel and came forth quietly, smiling slightly at Murasaki. "Akiyoshi-san was an Insei, perhaps he can show you how to..." She trailed off, recalling that Murasaki had easily predicted the moves of the TV pros.
"Ahh, it was a long time ago that I was an Insei..." whispered Akiyoshi, shyly. Nurse Kurumae put on her best encouraging face for the other patient. She neglected to tell Murasaki that the pro exams had driven Akiyoshi into the mental hospital almost eight years ago... Oh well. It didn't matter - it was only a game, right? She gathered the stones from the cardboard box and left the patients to their own devices. There was still the matter of old Mrs. Miyaji on the third floor, who believed that all of her food was poisoned... Nurse Kurumae sighed and quickly left the room before something else disturbed her routine.
Perhaps two or three hours later, she returned, thinking that Murasaki might be ready to return to his room. However, neither he nor Akiyoshi were to be found... Finally, she noticed Murasaki anxiously twisting his hair in his hands. The charge nurse, a younger girl called Miki, looked to be in a similar state.
"What's wrong?" asked Nurse Kurumae, frowning.
"That new patient... the one with the long hair... was playing Go with Akiyoshi-san. I wasn't really paying attention until Akiyoshi-san locked himself in the supply closet! He hasn't come out in almost an hour! What do I do?!"
"He'll come out, eventually..." muttered the older nurse, her frown deepening. "What exactly did the new patient do?"
"He trashed Akiyoshi-san!" laughed an old man with crooked teeth, a patient from the second floor. Nurse Kurumae vaguely knew him. "Akiyoshi always beats me, but I've never seen anyone play Go like that long-haired pretty boy. No wonder Aki-kun locked himself up - an eleven and a half moku difference! Unbelievable!" The old man continued laughing until a few other patients joined in a well, making a disjointed chorus. Nurse Kurumae began to wonder if she were the one going insane...
"Quiet!" she shouted, motioning for Murasaki to come with her. She didn't know what a "moku" was, but it sounded serious. But to beat Akiyoshi-san at his own game... could Murasaki be a failed Insei as well, or even a pro? Perhaps it would be easier to discover his identity if he were introduced to other Go players.
She only knew one thing - This "Murasaki" was no ordinary patient.
Useful Japanese Section!
Hatsune - The first song by the warbler bird, title of chapter 23 in "The Tale of Genji"
"The doctors are happy that you agreed to go to the common room, Murasaki." The man was not paying attention to Nurse Kurumae at all - he stared at bland paintings, or cracks in the tiled floor. Sometimes he was talkative, sometimes not. Perhaps a more meditative person would say that peaceful silence was the only way to absorb the outside world fully, but Nurse Kurumae was not a meditative person. She quickened her pace slightly so Murasaki was forced to keep up with the sharp click-click of her shoes.
"You'd enjoy the common room. There's a large television where some people watch movies, or if you like, there are games to try - cards, chess, Go, things like that. Some of the women do needlepoint." Last night, Nurse Kurumae had apparently set something off in Murasaki - a new excitement.
"People play Go here?" Murasaki had asked, suddenly interested.
"Ahh. some do. Do you know how to play?" At that point Murasaki's expression faltered back into the usual sadness.
"I. I don't know." The nurse smiled brightly, happy for any sign of change.
"This is the common room - would you like to use the television?" Murasaki looked at the black screen tentatively. Nurse Kurumae handed the remote control to him and began to leave, as she has other things to do. Murasaki simply turned it over in his hands. "Don't you know how to use that?" Murasaki shook his head.
It was strange how many gaps there were in Murasaki's mind. He obviously knew how to read, and had on occasion quoted old-fashioned poetry. He seemed to know a little history as well, probably more than the nurse could verify the truth of. But then he didn't seem to understand everyday things like having to plug in lamps to make them work, or the buttons on the remote control. Even normal clothing seemed unfamiliar to him. Curiously, he knew what a computer was, but didn't know what to make of the programs.
"It's like this, you see?" She pushed the "on" button and the large screen flickered to life. "Then you use these to change the station." She then handed the device to Murasaki, who began experimenting with the channel select button. A cooking show, some kind of sports program and a drama all flashed by. He hovered a moment on a commercial for canned drinks and some kind of nature program on fish, but quickly flipped through the dizzying number of programs. Unexpectedly, he dropped the remote to the floor with a plasticky clatter and nearly threw his body at the screen.
"No, no!" he muttered. "Before this one!" His fingertips brushed the face of some idol singer in agitation. Nurse Kurumae retrieved the remote, preparing to lecture the patient on taking better care of hospital property but decided to change the channel instead. The previous show was some kind of board game. It seemed to satisfy Murasaki, though, who watched it with rapt attention.
"That's go, isn't it?" she began, but the patient barely heard her. The faces of the players were not seen, only an aerial view of two gnarled, disembodied hands elegantly placing stones on a grid. A few minutes went by in which nothing at all happened. Murasaki's hand slowly moved towards an empty space on the board. A few moments later, a hand placed a black stone there. Excitement shining on his face, he touched another place on the TV screen. Soon after, white followed his move. This continued for perhaps five minutes until white abruptly rescinded his hand, to Murasaki's disappointment.
"White resigns," came the announcer's voice. The winner is Ogata 10- Dan, who will now advance to the next round of the tournament. Ogata- sensei is favored in the next match, but Kurata 6-Dan has been unexpectedly difficult to beat." The camera then panned though the audience to a female announcer who gave a recap of the game. Nurse Kurumae initially thought that Murasaki was interested in the woman - his face was so close to the screen. However, it seemed to be a member of the audience behind the announcer that caught his attention - a young boy with half-bleached hair engaged in an animated discussion with a black-haired person of the same height. Murasaki's hand lay on the television screen as if touching the cool glass could somehow bring him into the world trapped inside it. When the screen shifted to a colorful advertisement, he sadly allowed his hand to drop.
"Nurse Kurumae?" he asked softly.
"Yes?"
"I want. to play that game." Nurse Kurumae thought for a few moments, and then went to the supply closet. Perhaps if she could get Murasaki to play a game, she could get back to her rounds faster. It was only a cheap plastic goban, but it would be good enough.
"Akiyoshi-san?" she called. A thin, nervous-looking man, perhaps a few years older than her strange patient, set aside a thick novel and came forth quietly, smiling slightly at Murasaki. "Akiyoshi-san was an Insei, perhaps he can show you how to..." She trailed off, recalling that Murasaki had easily predicted the moves of the TV pros.
"Ahh, it was a long time ago that I was an Insei..." whispered Akiyoshi, shyly. Nurse Kurumae put on her best encouraging face for the other patient. She neglected to tell Murasaki that the pro exams had driven Akiyoshi into the mental hospital almost eight years ago... Oh well. It didn't matter - it was only a game, right? She gathered the stones from the cardboard box and left the patients to their own devices. There was still the matter of old Mrs. Miyaji on the third floor, who believed that all of her food was poisoned... Nurse Kurumae sighed and quickly left the room before something else disturbed her routine.
Perhaps two or three hours later, she returned, thinking that Murasaki might be ready to return to his room. However, neither he nor Akiyoshi were to be found... Finally, she noticed Murasaki anxiously twisting his hair in his hands. The charge nurse, a younger girl called Miki, looked to be in a similar state.
"What's wrong?" asked Nurse Kurumae, frowning.
"That new patient... the one with the long hair... was playing Go with Akiyoshi-san. I wasn't really paying attention until Akiyoshi-san locked himself in the supply closet! He hasn't come out in almost an hour! What do I do?!"
"He'll come out, eventually..." muttered the older nurse, her frown deepening. "What exactly did the new patient do?"
"He trashed Akiyoshi-san!" laughed an old man with crooked teeth, a patient from the second floor. Nurse Kurumae vaguely knew him. "Akiyoshi always beats me, but I've never seen anyone play Go like that long-haired pretty boy. No wonder Aki-kun locked himself up - an eleven and a half moku difference! Unbelievable!" The old man continued laughing until a few other patients joined in a well, making a disjointed chorus. Nurse Kurumae began to wonder if she were the one going insane...
"Quiet!" she shouted, motioning for Murasaki to come with her. She didn't know what a "moku" was, but it sounded serious. But to beat Akiyoshi-san at his own game... could Murasaki be a failed Insei as well, or even a pro? Perhaps it would be easier to discover his identity if he were introduced to other Go players.
She only knew one thing - This "Murasaki" was no ordinary patient.
Useful Japanese Section!
Hatsune - The first song by the warbler bird, title of chapter 23 in "The Tale of Genji"