Disclaimer: still the same...

Here's chapter 5. The first part (which is long) was written from Leni's perspective, the second from an OC's perspective, and the last from Oogami's. If you feel that the events here are somewhat cliché and predictable, you're not alone. I feel that too. Hopefully it's not too bad, I'll be a lot more careful with the next chapters.

This chapter features three new OC-s, two Hanagumi sons and a girl unrelated to the Hanagumi. Judging the increasing complexity of the character relationships here, I might eventually get a family tree done and put on my profile. Everyone in the story is pretty much mapped in my head, I just have to find the time to construct the tree.

Thanks to Yumi Michiyo and James Birdsong for their reviews, and also to all others who have read it. Hopefully this chapter is decent enough for you to enjoy.

Dawn of Seasons

Chapter 5: Tokyo, Paris

Tokyo, Late Spring 1948

"One, two, three, JUMP! Now, you see a butterfly passing by. Turn around and run, TAP, TAP, TAP. You lost it, now stop. One, two, look around..."

Leaning against the dance studio's mirror, Leni quietly observed the four young dancers. Being a trained dancer, she could say that the routine wasn't technically hard. It needed a bit of emotional work, though, for there was a story to be told.

So far, all the four girls had been doing good. She had little to say about Chiharu, the girl had always been expressive. Aki and Natsue were improving, they slowly shifted their focuses from gaining perfection to enjoying the dance. The one person who stole her attention, however, was Mifuyuko.

Yoneda-shihainin was right in suggesting that they put the girl on the stage. Performing was a good outlet for Mifuyuko to release all her sadness and survivor's guilt. She always looked more alive while dancing or singing.

Mifuyuko's relationships with everyone had improved, though she was still introverted and shy. Her presence in the group toned down the alarming competition between Natsue and Aki, and overall the girls were much better now. They had not yet started Mifuyuko's combat training, but they had been bringing her into the VR control room recently. She boosted her friends' combat performances by just being there, for some reasons they could not explain. Seemed like their puzzle had been missing a piece so far – and Mifuyuko was that missing piece.

The list of good happenings in these recent months elongated with the news from the Kanzaki research lab. The fifth soul crystal, which they thought was dying, suddenly decided that it wanted to grow instead. The Commander immediately left for Kawasaki to check it. The four sisters – Maria, Sakura, Iris, and Leni – opened a bottle of Vodka in Maria's room that night, after triple-checking that the girls were asleep. The impromptu celebration was worth it, though the usually sensible sisters got totally trashed and suffered from killer hangovers the next day. It refreshed their minds and helped them refocusing after all the rapid, confusing events in these last few months.

Currently, the High Commando was in Paris on a Revue International conference. Leni had to fill in for them, and Iris had to take over the girls' trainings, both in performance and in combat. Sumire, Orihime, Kouran, and Kanna had been helping with the trainings, though it was not possible for them to be at Daitekoku Gekijou all the times. Orihime had a family to care for, Kouran had her responsibilities at Hanayashiki, Sumire had a company to run, and Kanna, well, Kanna had her own businesses to do. None of them was coming today, though Orihime did send some treats – cakes for the girls, a bottle of wine for Iris and Leni. All were sent with a note not to 'polish everything off in one go.'

Leni shifted her weight from one leg to another and focused back to the dance routine. Seemed that she had missed quite a lot as she got lost in her own thoughts, for the girls had ended their dance. They were now stretching out in the middle of the room, grinning like idiots as they saw each other in the mirror. Iris circled around them with her markings' folder on hand, playfully swatting each and every head as she saw the idiotic grins. They all ended up laughing.

Leni grinned as well. She was still grinning when the four girls said their goodbyes and dashed out of the room, relieved that their training routines had finished. They had gone through a lot of things today – started with their writing and maths lessons in the morning, followed by the VR training, and lastly the dance coaching which had just ended. They would all sleep like babies tonight, and that would be great. There would be no nightmare-induced hysteria for Leni and Iris to handle.

"How's Niisan, Maria, and Sakura?" Iris asked.

"The Commander is alright, a bit tired but otherwise fine," Leni answered, crossing the room to join her sister. "Maria and Sakura were different cases. Apparently Paris Kagekidan's junior team have been recreating that Kaijin Bessou[1] dance. The two are having a bit of exhausting fun helping Hanabi coaching the young ladies, each night after the meetings."

Iris chuckled. The Kaijin Bessou dance, though beautiful, was sort of embarrassing for some actresses, especially those with little experiences in depicting love scenes.

"How are they going so far?" the youngest Hanagumi asked, dropping herself on the floor.

"Not bad, judging Maria and Sakura's expressions," Leni answered, recalling the Kinematron conference she previously had with her two sisters. "Opening night will be tonight, and the Paris youngsters are ready. It's rumoured that the venue will be overcrowded tonight, thanks to the fame of Teikoku Kagekidan Hanagumi's Kaijin Bessou."

Kaijin Bessou was Teikoku Kagekidan Hanagumi's 'signature play', as assigned by Revue International. It had been recreated so many times by Revue Troupes all over the world, though no one had been able to exceed the original performance so far. Apparently the recording of the theme song had been distributed in France as well. According to the Commander, Subete wa Umi e[2]was a big hit in the Japanese community in Paris.

"The Paris girls will be fine," Iris commented, pulling Leni to sit down with her. "They're in good hands there. I think they'll be able to dance properly, even if they've never danced Japanese traditional dances before."

Leni smiled at this remark. The junior Paris Hanagumi consisted of two French, a Dutch, a Moroccan, and an Argentinian. Sakura told Leni that the Moroccan would be playing the princess, and one of the French would be playing the prince. These two girls had never been anywhere near Japan before, and neither had ever met a Japanese untilthey were introduced to Hanabi. It was a bit of challenge getting them into proper Japanese gestures, but according to Maria, they managed it at the end.

"Do you reckon that they will ask us – you and me – to do Kaijin Bessou?" Iris asked, curiosity in her eyes.

"Maybe," Leni answered. Kaijin Bessou was one of the plays Leni and Iris had not been asked to take over. It wasn't impossible that they would be asked to do it, but the Kaijin Bessou fun was so far reserved for Sakura, Maria, and Ratchet Altair who played the Prince once when she was visiting[3].

Someone knocked the door. Iris sprung up to her feet and opened it. From the mirror, Leni could see two grinning faces. Her nephews Ryuhou Kanzaki and Taka Kirishima had dropped by to visit their aunts and cousins, straight after school.

"Ah, you two!" Iris exclaimed happily as the boys took turns hugging her. The loving Tatie stepped aside and let the boys get inside to greet their Tante. They pulled Leni up and enveloped her in a group hug – the 'boys' ritual' they'd been doing since the boys could barely grab Leni's waist. Now, the sixteen year olds were already taller than most of the Hanagumi members, spare Maria and Kanna. Would't be long until they overtake Maria, though. Taka might grow taller than Kanna. She was his mother after all, and though the second eldest Hanagumi never said anything about the man who fathered her son, Leni had an impression that Taka's father was more or less as tall as Kanna.

"Geez, Tante, you are so short," Ryuhou teased Leni, squinting at their images in the mirror.

Leni smiled and reached up to ruffle the boy's dark blonde hair. It was his only feature which revealed his European ancestry. Face-wise, Ryuhou inherited everything from his mother and maternal grandfather – a fact that Leni, Iris, and Sumire's other sisters were always grateful about. Sumire did not need a constant reminder of her jerk of estranged husband, whose current whereabouts was a total mystery for them.

"Hey!" the Kanzaki heir complained, frantically flattening his hair back. His cousin grinned mischievously at this, and Leni knew why. It wasn't a secret that Ryuhou had this big crush on Natsue. The boy was always self-conscious around the youngest Oogami, though so far he hadn't yet got the guts to tell the young lady that he liked her. Not that it was an entirely bad thing, though. Natsue was only twelve, and the timing wasn't quite right.

"The girls might be in the shower," the German casually told the boys. "Might take them another hour to get ready for dinner. Won't you be expected at home?"

"Ka-chan and Sumire-obasama are both out of town," Taka answered. "Seems that they suddenly wanted a vacation – and off they went. We've sent the driver back home to tell the staff that we're not coming back for dinner today, so it should be alright. They won't tell our mothers about this, I think we bribed them enough."

Leni smiled again and shook her head. The rules in the Kanzaki/Kirishima household was quite strict, but the boys, being their mothers' sons, had always found ways to get away. It didn't help much that Sumire and Kanna were prone to indescribable antics as well. For the start, outsiders would see their current living arrangements as strange, though the Hanagumi fully understood the reason behind it.

"Tonight is Italian night," Iris informed. "I'm going to cook that pasta dish your Zia[4]Orihime always served. Do you want to help me, while waiting for the girls?"

"Sure, why not?" Taka said. Ryuhou nodded in agreement. The boys could cook, much better than Natsue, Aki, and Chiharu could. Thanks to Kanna who had always involved them in the kitchen since they were young.

"Are you joining, Leni?" Iris asked.

"Not today," Leni answered, thinking about the unfinished letter laying on the desk at the managerial office. "I need to finish something – I'll join you at dinnertime."

"Alright, then," Iris responded, smiling. "Come on, boys."

The three left for the kitchen. After a bit of tidying up, Leni locked the dance studio and went back to the managerial office. The High Commando would be away for at least one more week. Leni hoped they would be back as soon as possible, for things were getting a bit chaotic. There were new Koubu-s to be checked, new playscripts to assess, and profiles of potential new members to read. Leni had gone through the profiles, and so far, she had not considered any of them. They were all loved and shielded, coming from happy, complete families. It was unlikely that any of them could be a good match for the Hanagumi.

Dropping slowly onto the guest chair – she didn't feel comfortable using any of her brother or sisters' chairs – Leni picked the pen from the table and started thinking. She was to write a letter to someone in German. It was harder than what she initially expected, for her Deutsche[5] had somewhat transpired after twenty years of using mostly Nihongo.

The office phone rang. Sighing, Leni put down the pen she'd just picked up and reached for the black phone.

"Daitekoku Gekijou, Leni Milchstrasse speaking. How can I help you?"

"Leni? It's me."

Leni immediately recognised the voice across the cable. It was Kanna.

"Ah, Kanna. How is it going?"

"Not so good. Sumire hasn't been in a good shape, and I'm taking her back to her parents' place for a change of scene."

"I see. How long are you going to be there?"

"No idea. It's a bit bad this time – we might be back in a week or so. Sorry about this."

Leni inhaled deeply. It had been fifteen years since that happened, yet, Sumire was still bearing the scars. Her bouts of mental instability and confusion had become less often and less severe over these last ten years, but seemed that they started going back after they adopted Mifuyuko.

"That's alright, we understand. Hope Sumire gets better soon."

"Thanks, Leni. Guess I'll talk to you later – she'll wake up from her nap soon."

The call ended. Leni put the phone back down and stood up, slowly walking to the big window. The letter could wait. Right now she needed a bit of break, everything had become too much.

Paris

It was just one of the usual nights. The Monsieur[6] was busy behind the counter, taking orders and counting payments. The Madame[7]was nowhere to be seen – most likely in the kitchen, cooking whatever those customers wanted. Plates flew rapidly from the kitchen to the dining area, ferried around by the frantic waiters and waitresses. One young man, juggling two plates on each hand, nearly collided with her as she made her way to the lonely piano at the corner of the room. She would have to make do without the pianist tonight. He pianist was dead drunk and couldn't make it to the cafe – his embarrassed wife appeared on her door just before she left, apologising for her husband's behaviour. Not that it was a bad thing, though. The pathetic man had tried to hit on her several times, despite the huge age gap and the fact that he was married – to a decent looking woman nevertheless.

Stashing her little purse into the tiny gap between the piano and the wall, she briefly scanned the entire cafe. She quickly spotted the usual customers, sitting in groups on their usual tables talking about trivial things that sparked their interests. There were some couples as well, lost in that thing they called 'love'. They would not care much about what she sang today. She guessed she would just sing anything she wanted to – soothing her own heart. Perhaps she'd throw in some foreign songs, she was a bit bored of French at the moment. That Japanese song they'd been airing on the radio these recent weeks was interesting.

After a bit of warm-ups, she started with her usual overtures. Juggling the piano and her voice was quite tough, she couldn't interact with the customers as much as she liked to. The multitasking made her singing some tunes out-of-key as well, though no one really paid attention, judging the constant buzz of talks.

Or perhaps someone did.

Lifting her eyes from the piano keys, she subtly turned her head to the far end corner of the room, from which she felt she was being watched. Turned out that she had more than one keen audiences tonight. Huddling closely around the small table were three people, one of them an Asian man. One of his two companions was a soft-looking Asian woman, might be his wife for Asian women didn't normally go out at night without their husbands. The third person was a bit ambiguous – she couldn't really tell whether it was a man or a woman. One thing she was sure about was that this person was Caucasian, at least partially. The natural-looking platinum blonde hair was a dead giveaway.

Smiling cheekily to herself, the young singer ended the melody she was playing on the piano and made an improvised transition to another. Her watchers might not be Japanese, but there was also a chance that they were. They might appreciate this.

"Itsuka wa umi e minamoto no umi e,

Umi kara umareshi subete wa umi e..."[2]

"... Ai mo, nikushimi mo,

chikara mo, yume mo,

namida to natte, nagarete kieru.

Subete wa umi e..."[2]

Stifling a chuckle, the Commander glanced at his wife and his vice. They were both stunned beyond words, he knew, though they used their acting skills to hide it. No one had ever thrown this song back to them before.

It wasn't a particularly good rendition of the somewhat mysterious, deep song. For start, the young French woman was inconsistent about who she was singing as. She just merged the duet into a slightly awkward solo. The pronunciation slip-ups were a bit funny as well, the girl surely didn't know Japanese. The only thing she got totally right was the feeling. Though her mechanical punctuations clearly showed that she didn't understand the lyrics even a single word, the emotions in her voice conveyed more than the mispronounced lyrics and the awkward blended tunes.

"Not too bad, huh?" he asked the two women sitting next to him.

The two looked at each other, having their usual silent conspiracy about what to say.

"She's not bad, she's just untrained," Sakura whispered, eyeing the girl, who was now singing an English song. "The breathing techniques, the way she keeps leaping between her head voice and her chest voice... Once we've got it fixed, she'll be amazing."

"She would make a good male lead," Maria added. "Her chest voice is much better than her head voice. Her face is slightly too feminine, though – we'll need to use some make-up to conceal the girlish features."

The Commander chuckled.

"She might not have what we need," he indirectly reminded the women. The two startled at this sentence. Seemed that they'd been thinking that they would definitely take the girl under their wings and polish her into a top star.

"You're right, Manager," Maria finally said, after a few moments of silence. "There's only a slim chance of that. She's also too old to join the girls. Let's just go back to Chattes Noires, it's been pretty late and we have another morning meeting tomorrow."

To be continued...

Notes:

[1] Kaijin Bessou: play in Kayou Show 5. See chapter 2 of this story for more explanation.

[2] Subete wa umi e: finale song for Kaijin Bessou. It translates to 'Everything Flows into the Sea'.

Animelyrics has its lyrics and translation.

[3] In the Sakura Taisen Movie, Ratchet, instead of Maria, plays the Prince in Kaijin Bessou.

[4] Zia: (Italian) Aunt.

[5] Deutsche: (German) the German language

Nihongo: (Japanese) the Japanese language

[6] Monsieur: (French) Sir, Master

[7] Madame: (French) Madam

See you next week :).