Ponto-cho - Maiko Dreams in the Alley by Yukimiya Arisa TL by boke ### TL notes indicated by hash tags like this: ### ### Page numbers indicated by —XX for example, page one is: —01 ### Panel numbers indicated by -X for example, panel one is: -1 ### sfx- means the following is a sound effect. ### hw- means the following is handwritten text. ### Unless otherwise noted, panel and text balloon flow is from upper right to lower left. ### This TL indexes on file number in case the page numbers don’t match. ### Sometimes my comments are snark or color, so feel free to ignore those. ### For this one shot, I’m not bothering trying to show Hana’s Kansai accent —165 -1 The human heart - I do not grasp, but in my old home flowers fill the air with scent like in the days long gone. Ki no Tsurayaki ### This is a famous wakka poem from the Hyakunin Isshu collection. Ponto-cho - Maiko Dreams in the Alley Yukimiya Arisa Even if people end up changing, the scent of flowers does not. 30 page one-shot. Fushimi Refined Sake ###top lantern Fish and Duck ###bottom lantern —166 -1 Kyoto. The old capital. Ponto-cho ###an area in Kyotot Ponto-cho ###sign -2 It’s one of the famous “kagai” areas within Kyoto. Right off Shijyou street, which is bustling during the daytime, it’s a quiet, narrow alley. ### kagai area regions where Geiko and Maiko live and work. Oike Street ###top street in map Sanjo Street ###from right to left Kawabata Street Kamo River Ponto-cho Kiyamachi Street Shijo Street ###bottom -3 From the practice spaces that the Geiko and Maiko use, to tea houses, high end ryotei restaurants and bars… Even large scale restaurants are lined up down this alley. When night falls, it quietly flourishes. —167 -1 Aya, is it the first time you’ve been here? Yeah, that’s right… Since I moved to Kawara-cho, I’ve been hanging out in Shinkyougyoku. ###all areas of Kyoto —2 Once I got here, I just thought this place had nothing but bars. Aren’t you from here? My family’s from Uji. -3 So I made you come out quite a distance! Not at all! I’m just so happy to spend my birthday with you, Sensei… sfx- Jingle —168 -1 Fish and Duck Kyoto Fushimi Kura —169 -1 Did you see that? -2 The maiko that just passed by? That’s Yumeno, the most popular maiko in this kagai! Everyone’s been predicting great things for her ever since she started training! -3 I’m so happy I could see Yumeno for real! She sure was pretty… -4 What’s the matter? Nothing… -6 That maiko-san… She was really pretty. When we passed by… She smelled really nice. -7 That is… —170 -1 A childhood memory. -2 Hana-chan, you smell really nice today! Did you put on perfume or something? You got it! I saved up my allowance and finally was able to buy it! It’s Sakura perfume. -3 Wooow! That’s so cool! Pretty cool, right? I love this fragrance. -4 Do you wanna try it, Aya? sfx- Eager Eager Wha? -5 Nah, it wouldn’t go well on someone like me… It works on you because you’re cute… It’s fine! Just hurry up and try some! Puchi ###manga —171 -1 I met Hana chan in pre-school. Sakura class. She was the first girl I made friends with. We were always together at school. She was always by my side. -2 She was my amazing friend -3 See? Now we smell the same, right? -4 I loved Hana-chan. —172 -1 Sniff… C’mon, don’t cry, it makes it hard to go… -2 Heh heh, you’re crying too, Hana-chan. I caught it from you ‘cause you’re a crybaby! -3 I’m kinda scared to go by myself, ok? I don’t know anyone there. Will I really be ok? -4 You’ll do fine, Hana-chan! What’s with you? -5 Hana-chan, just be true to yourself! That how you are, so you’ll be fine! When we meet up next, you’ll be the kagai’s most famous maiko-san, right? —173 -1 I’ll always be in your corner, Hana-chan. sfx- Brrrrring -2 Thanks! I’ll write! Be sure to read them! -3 Yeah! I’ll write too! -4 Clink —174 -1 Happy birthday. -2 Thank you, Sensei. -3 Aya Stop calling me sensei, already. You’re already graduated, and I’m not your teacher anymore. -4 We’re no longer teacher/student. -5 As of today, you’re an adult. -6 The flavor of my first alcoholic drink is… —175 -1 Harsh. Painful. It didn’t taste good at all. -2 The smell of booze. The smell of cigarettes Au de cologne -3 This place is overflowing with all sort of unfamiliar scents. -4 I bought Sakura perfume, imitating Hana-chan. -5 It’s all gone now. I had better get some more… We ended up staying there for a while… You’re right. —176 -1 Doesn’t seem like we’ll catch the last train. -3 Tonight You smell really nice. What are you wearing? -4 …I forgot. —177 -1 Dear Aya-chan, -2 How are you doing? Recently I haven’t been getting any letters from you. Things have been really boring day after day. -3 If you’re doing good, then it’s all good. Someone hasn’t made you cry again, right? Am I overthinking things? You are a crybaby, after all, so I worry. But no matter what… —178 -1 I’ll always be in your corner, Aya-chan. I have always loved you. Hana -2 Sensei… -3 Yeah… I uh, need to go home. —179 -1 Hey! Wait! The trains aren’t running! I’ll take a taxi! -2 Aya! I…! -3 I’m not going to see you anymore, Sensei… -4 This is sudden… I love you the most, Aya… I really care for you, ok? -5 I… think I also love you, Sensei. But… —180 -2 But I hate myself when I’m with you! -3 Fuck… -4 Anyways! Just come here! sfx- Nab Nn! -5 Let me go! —181 -4 Aya-chan —182 -1 This way! Hana-chan?! -2 Hey! Wait! —184 -1 Where the hell…? -2 Hana-cha… Shh -3 Come with me. Just for today, this time only. -4 I’ll ask the house mother. You can stay here tonight. I’m sorry, Hana-chan… —184 -2 You’re still up? -4 Heheh. Your hair with those clothes cracks me up. -5 What can I do about it? I have to keep it like this for a week. -6 You’re amazing, Hana-chan. Why? -7 You really did become the kagai’s number one. That’s really cool. -9 I… —185 -1 I’ve always wanted to be like you, Hana-chan. -2 When I read your letters… it always seemed like you were in a different world. So bright and shiny. I know you must have had hard times too, but… even so it seemed so special. -3 Compared to that, my daily life… I didn’t have anything to strive for like you. -4 In any case, my normal everyday life just passing by made me feel… so lonely. —186 -1 Little by little, knowing how hard you were working made me feel awful. I couldn’t even write you back. I’m sorry… -2 Y’know, Sensei, he… -3 Really listened to all my random boring crap. When I told him that, unlike you, I was afraid I wouldn’t find anything I wanted to do or be, he said… -4 It’s ok for you just to be you, Aya. Even if you have nothing, you’re amazing just the way you are. Telling me he loved me, even though I had nothing? I was so happy. -5 Sensei was the first person to tell me something like that. —187 -1 That’s when I fell in love with him. Even though he was married. You should have never fallen in love with someone like him. -2 You should have known better. -4 Aya-chan… What’s wrong with just being true to who you are? —188 -1 Sniff Geez! You’re crying again?! -2 You really are nothing but a crybaby… ###bold and italicize “are” Sorry… -4 But, stop with the affairs already, ok? —189 -2 You told me, right? -3 Back when I decided to ditch college and become a maiko. My parents and my teachers were all soo against it. My friends laughed at me. Hana? A maiko? Seriously? Not even going to high school and becoming a maiko? Rad. I’d never be able to do that. -4 But… You totally can do it, Hana-chan! -5 Hana-chan, just be true to who you are! -6 You were the only one to tell me that. —190 -1 It’s only because you said that that I could give it my all all this time. are you? Thanks for your letter! I was so surprised by all the goodies! You are so pretty when you are all dressed up as a Maiko! But your practice seems really tough. I don’t know anything about the Maiko world, So when I see you doing your thing, it makes me fell like I can try harder myself. I always look forward to your letters, so please keep writing to me! Ok, I hope you’re doing well. I’m always rooting for you. Aya -2 You say you have nothing at all? There’s no way that BS could be true. —191 -1 I know you, Aya-chan. I know all of your good point and everything there is to like about you. -2 Every since we met back in Sakura class… -3 I’ve known everything. —192 -2 Hana-chaan! It’s late? Can you not cry, already? It’ll bother the neighbors! -2 Hugging Hana-chan, I could smell -3 The faint fragrance of Sakura wafting from her skin. It’s Hana-chan’s smell. -4 The smell of booze The smell of cigarettes The smell of au du cologne Are all washed away. -5 It was that gentle of a fragrance. —193 -1 Dear Hana-chan, -2 How are you? I’m hanging in there. It’s a little early, but happy birthday! We’re both twenty now, huh? Let’s go out drinking or something sometime, ok? If you’re up for it, let’s find a day that works for both of us next month and go out. If you are, then please give me a reply. -3 I’m really looking forward to being able to see you again. Now and forever… —194 -3 Please take care of me. -4 The End.