Chapter 26: Fools Of Owari

Okay, so I said that…

And the two of them didn’t disagree with me…

And they also offered me to stay at the place…

So, then…

“Why the hell am I in this situation?” I yell out of my lungs, desperately trying to find comfort in the heat of the summer sun while wearing this ridiculously suffocating suit that I’m forced into.

“Now, now, ‘Jeanne’…” Katsu, who is walking beside me, lets out a cheeky smile in an attempt to quell my anger. “It’s a bit bad for you that I only have these kinds of clothes left, but surely you don’t want to wear rags out in the streets, do you?”

“Who cares!” I shout to answer amidst the sound of what seems like thousands of cicadas in the area. Seriously, what kind of sick place is this? Normally people don’t need to shout in the middle of the road just to maintain a conversation. “At least it’s not as hot as this stupid thing! And why am I here in the first place?”

“We wouldn’t want people to notice, right?” Katsu covers his ears as he answers my question, unsure if it’s to block him from the cicadas or my shouting. “It’s weird for a foreigner to just stay at a house for a long period of time, so as of right now, it’s best to just pretend that you’re a new maid of the household. That’s why we’re picking up the young master from school.”

“Yeah, exactly. Then why am I here? The kid can walk himself home, right?” I keep on with my complaint. “He’s what? Four years younger than us? That’s still almost an adult!”

“Now, now. I know that this might be a bit excessive…” Waving his hands in an attempt to calm me down, Katsu answers with an awkward smile. “But you know how Master is, especially towards his children.”

“… Tch, I guess you’re right,” having no other way to refute, I click my tongue in annoyance. “Just look at how he lets you do whatever the hell you want.”

“…”

“Well, anyway, where is this school that the brat is at?” Seeing his immediate silence and the way his eyes divert onto the road, I change the subject, knowing that I just said something that I shouldn’t have said.

“It’s over there. See?” Katsu points towards the tower standing tall to the east of the town, over all of the other buildings. “It’s the only western-style structure in this town, since here in Japan, schools still follow the same kind of teaching that you people in the west have: mostly history about God and the angels.”

“Really now? I never knew.” I shrug at the comment, throwing out a hint of sarcasm.

“You don’t find it familiar? What’s your school like?”

“Never went to one. I came here in rags, remember?”

“Oh… Sorry about that.” Katsu immediately turns back to his mopey look a little while ago, so much that it ticks me off once again. Patting him hard on the back, I say:

“Geez, stop looking down all the time! It’s fine, I never wanted to go study in that hell hole anyway!”

“Ouch… Hehe, thanks, I guess.” Katsu smiles, but it almost looks like a frown, probably because of how hard I hit him. However, the expression is only for a short instant, as he soon points to the building that, from who knows when has already appeared before our eyes. “We’re here.”

Compared to all of the wooden pillars and walls from the other building, this tall cobblestone wall that seemingly goes on to no end, as well as this giant slab of wood that acts as the gate, does seem a lot less elegant, it’s as if this shouldn’t even belong in this town in the first place. Well, if all schools are like this, then I can see why that guy wanted freedom so bad.

Outside is a small station, only enough to fit one person on watch duty. However, like what I’ve seen so far with the streets, inside is not a person, but an angel dutifully keeping an eye on virtually everyone on the road, with a creepy stare that makes one feel like he’s looking directly into their soul. Seeing the two of us approaching the gate, the angel guard spreads his wings, grabs his spear with the curved, bladed edge similar to that that I saw earlier, and speaks:

“Halt, citizens. Why do you set foot here?”

“We’re here to pick up Musashibou Petoro-kun.” Katsu immediately answers. Seems like this is somewhat of a routine for him, as he immediately takes out a card of some sort from the inside of his suit. “Here is our pass.”

“Only one?” The angel asks, squinting his eyes in suspicion.

“It should be enough, isn’t it?” On the other hand, Katsu raises his eyebrows. “It’s said that it works for two people.”

“… Get in.” After a brief moment of hesitation, the angel clicks his tongue and opens the gate for us to enter, even if it seemingly ticks him off doing so.

“What was that all about?” I ask as soon as we enter the premises.

“As you can see there, schools in Japan aren’t just somewhere you can come and go as you please.” With a sigh, Katsu answers. “Since according to the angels here, education is the most important thing in order to ‘guide us to the path of righteousness.’ So, everything here is regulated. Children have a specific curfew that they have to follow every day to the tee.” Pointing towards the crowd that’s making their way towards the gate as we come in. “Look. This is the time for everyone to return home, and so everyone returns.”

“Now I don’t get why you wanted to pick up the brat even more. Wouldn’t he just follow the schedule?”

“Haha… If only it’s that easy,” with an awkward laugh, Katsu answers. “Anyway, that card you saw just now is a kind of pass that lets the guardians – in this case, us, but it’s usually for the parents, enter the school premise, in an attempt to ‘control the problem child’. That’s also why one pass is usually used for two people.”

“I see what you’re going here,” I answer, letting out a grin. “Maybe this kid isn’t so bad after all.”

“I knew you would say that,” Katsu lets out a boastful smile of his own, his first that I’ve seen so far. “See how I wanted to bring you along?”

“Yeah, yeah, great job,” I know I complained about his moody expression from before, but this smug look of his is ten times more annoying. “Just show me where the kid is.”

“Well… At this time of day, he’s probably still in his classroom. It should be close.”

Past the court and the watchtower lies a large building – the classrooms. With Katsu’s pass, we can get inside without a hitch, but the prying eyes of the angels keeping watch as well as the curious gazes of the students and teachers returning home still bring about an uncomfortable feeling. Going through the hallway to near the end, Katsu points out and lets out a sigh:

“Yup. There he is.”

As we close the distance between us, the boy’s figure slowly becomes clearer in my eyes, along with another angel standing opposite him, keeping watch of his every move. The boy stands still, spreading out his arms and trying to keep them as straight as possible, while on his hands are two large buckets, probably filled with water if you look at the way he’s staggering ever so slightly every few seconds. And not to mention that on his head is a bucket of the same nature, no wonder the poor kid is having a hard time. Is this the ‘punishment’ that Katsu was talking about? Must have it rough, these guys…

“Good evening, Sir. We are here to pick up Musashibou Petoro-kun.” Katsu politely bows towards the angel as their eyes meet, while his elbow lightly pokes on my side to signal me to do the same.

Judging by Katsu’s bothered look, it seems like we’re not going home that easily. The young man then gives me a timely translation:

“He said to wait for ten more minutes.”

“Well, this is gonna be fun.” I snicker and make a remark.

Meanwhile, the boy in question, still holding onto that delicate balance, chuckles at my comment, which is immediately returned by a death stare from the angel keeping watch. However, the boy doesn’t seem to care about it, and turns his attention to Katsu instead:

“Nii-san, go home.” I know that the two are just half-brothers, but that bored, bothered look between them is like two peas in a pod. I guess that’s their mother’s side at work.

“No. What if you get into more trouble?” Meanwhile, Katsu answers with something of his own. I might not know what it means, but I do know that the kid doesn’t like it one bit.

“Trouble? You think standing up to them is ‘trouble’?” The kid raises his voice, only to be interrupted by a shout from the angel:

“Silence!”

“Hey, don’t piss him off further.” I grab onto Katsu’s shoulder and whisper. “I don’t want to cause a scene here.”

“… Okay. Let’s just come back after ten minutes.” Letting out another sigh, Katsu agrees and turns to the angel:

“We’ll be back in ten minutes, then.”

 

“Now, care to explain what you did this time, Musa-chan?” As the ten-minute period passes, Katsu and I stand in front of the young boy yet again, with the former trying his best to crack a smile despite the veins of anger on his forehead being clearly visible.

You are reading story Peters’ Crosses at novel35.com

The boy, however, doesn’t seem to pay attention to his brother at all. Instead, his gaze is fixated on me, and, to my surprise, he then asks in French, with the same kind of precision as Katsu displayed earlier:

“I don’t see you around here. What’s your name?”

“How do you know I’m French?”

“I heard you whispered with nii-san earlier. Not that hard to realize your accent and language, to be honest.” Although his words might not mean much, I can practically see his nose puffing in excitement from the compliment. Kids will be kids, I guess.

“Good ears. By the way, by nii-san, I assume you mean your brother?”

“Yeah,” the boy nods in agreement. “It’s Japanese for ‘older brother’.”

“But not in a very friendly way.” Katsu suddenly adds, still carrying that fake smile on his face.

“And why should I be friendly towards you, stupid nii-san?” The boy, in only a split second, switches back to his earlier angry look and retorts. “You don’t even stand up for your brother!”

“If you don’t always cause trouble around school, you wouldn’t be in this kind of situation in the first place.” With a shake of the head, Katsu answers. “What did you do this time?”

“I only yelled at them that angels were actually murderers when they were lecturing about how they existed for our sake,” the boy answers with conviction as if the contents of what he said were completely true and justified. I can already understand how that would go, even if I have to admit that what he said really wasn’t so far from the truth.

Katsu, meanwhile, looks like he’s just aged another few years, and shakes his head once more:

“Musa-chan, you have to realize that you can’t just go around and blurt things out like that, no matter if it’s true or not… Think of your own safety first, you hear me?”

“And what? To forever live like some kind of pet for the angels? To never speak up our minds, even if the truth is on our side? Nii-san, you were there that day! You knew it even better than I did! Why do you never fight back?”

“It’s because I knew that I don’t want to!” Katsu shouts in anger for the first time I’ve seen, completely removing the overly nice mask that he’s been wearing all day. “It’s because I saw it that I don’t want you to experience the same! Do you think I’m happy when I see those angels spout out their lies? Do you think I’m happy that they treat you like dirt every time you speak up your mind? Do you think I’m happy that there’s a literal walking bomb in our home starting from today?”

It doesn’t take a genius to know what Katsu meant just now, especially after seeing him truly speaking from his heart like that. But even then, just because he’s getting sentimental doesn’t mean that he can say whatever he wants.

“Hey! What do you mean ‘bomb’?” I raise my voice, smacking him on the back of the head as payback. Katsu’s words, however, reach the boy in a rather unexpected way.

“Hey, what does he mean by that? Who exactly are you?” The boy asks again, and this time I can practically see the sparkles in his eyes with each word that comes out of his mouth.

Katsu, meanwhile, instantly regrets everything he just said. “… crap.” The young man then quickly winks at me and repeatedly shakes his head, desperately signaling me to not reveal my true identity.

As if I’d listen to you, stupid. That’s what you get for calling me a walking bomb.

“I’m Petra Romeé. But when we’re outside, I’d prefer it if you call me Jeanne de Lorraine.”

“Why?” The boy asks with a curious look on his face.

“I’m faking an identity to stay here for a while,” I answer. However, before I can say anything else, the boy has already jumped for joy as he excitedly pumps his fists into the sky:

“I can’t believe it! You’re here! You’re really here! People like Mom! I knew it! I knew someone like you would appear here sooner or later!”

I can’t help but crack a smile after witnessing that childlike fit, for some reason. It’s annoying at first, but I think it’s better for him that way. Children deserve to be carefree, after all.

After a brief look around to confirm that there’s no angel in our vicinity, I pull out my cross and show it to the boy with a grin on my face. “In the flesh. What do you think? It’s similar to your mother’s, right?”

“It really is another one! I can’t believe it! Please, tell me everything! How did you get your cross? How do you use it? Can I get one too? No, how can I get one?”

“That’s enough, you two!” Quickly knocking on our heads, Katsu interrupts. “We have to take you home, Musa-chan, and prepare for dinner too.”

“Come on, nii-san! There’s another here for real! Can’t we just stay for a bit more?”

“You’ll have plenty of time after dinner. After all, it’s your house I’m staying in.” Gently rubbing his head, I answer with a smile.

“Really! That’s amazing! I’ll be waiting for your story, Petra-nee!” With a grin as bright as the sun, the boy immediately runs off, leading the way for us to return.

 

Later that night, as we all gather around the dining table, through the pestering of the young boy, Petoro, as well as Ushiwaka, I have no choice but to tell the family of three my story and experience with my cross so far.

“Oh, dear… I don’t know that you went through so much…” Ushiwaka exclaims as he empties his cup of sake – a kind of rice wine famous in this nation.

“I’m over it, really,” I answer without much thought. What’s passed is in the past, after all. And after all that promising I made to myself, I can’t be down all the time. “Besides, in the end, it helped me face my past, and for that, I’m grateful.”

“So, each of the crosses can be used to better oneself…” Petoro says with a voice full of excitement. However, he’s immediately reminded by his father, who glares at the rest of us, clearly unhappy about our decision earlier in the day:

“But remember, your mother’s cross is an entirely different story. We’ll find it, sure, but to dispose of it ourselves, you hear me?”

“Yes, Dad…” The boy answers with a saddened look, but from his tone and the way he grips his hand, I don’t think he’s one to give up so easily. The conversation ends there without much else to say, and after dinner, we all return to our separate quarters: Ushiwaka and Petoro to their own rooms, while Katsu and I are at the kitchen washing the dishes.

“By the way, where am I supposed to be sleeping?” I ask as we place the last of the dishes away.

“Well…” Katsu suspiciously scratches his head as an answer.

“What’s wrong?”

“We have one room left, but… How about I just show it to you?”

As we then make our way upstairs, in the corner of the hall, the two of us stop in front of a large room behind sliding doors made of bamboo and paper. The paper itself has already turned brown, and the bamboo frame is covered in dust. This room hasn’t been used for a long time, I’d say.

Sliding the door out of the way to reveal inside only a large straw mat on the floor and a wooden chest in the corner of the room, Katsu slowly makes his way in with a broom in his hand. As the words are about to leave my mouth, looking at his face filled with nostalgia, sadness, and regret, I decide that it’s best if I don’t ask him anything about this place. His expression says it all, anyway.

“Should I… sleep somewhere else?” In the end, this is all I could ask.

“... No, you can stay here.” Katsu answers. Even if it’s within the darkness, I can still see his arms moving onto his face to wipe away the tears slowly flowing out. “I’m sorry it’s so dusty; no one has been using this room for quite a while now, and it’s best for us to keep it this way.”

“It was Musa-chan’s idea, actually.” Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Katsu continues. “He might not look like it, but he’s an emotional one.”

I guess that in the kid’s mind if he just leaves it like that, none of the memories he made with his mother will go away. I feel kind of bad staying here now.

“Is it really okay for me to be staying here?”

“Don’t worry. We talked about it beforehand. He understands.” Katsu replies with a nod. That explains the part when the two of them went to prepare dinner earlier, while I’m sure a normal butler would have been able to do it all alone. “And besides… No, never mind. Anyway, the room is yours to stay, even if it does need some cleaning.”

“… Well, if you say so.” I reluctantly take the broom off Katsu’s hand and start cleaning up, while he soon leaves the premises. So, I will be living here for the foreseeable future. Hopefully not for too long.

You can find story with these keywords: Peters’ Crosses, Read Peters’ Crosses, Peters’ Crosses novel, Peters’ Crosses book, Peters’ Crosses story, Peters’ Crosses full, Peters’ Crosses Latest Chapter