Tasuku Takato/A Mighty Warrior's Dignity

Handmade Hiiragi Iwashi

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2

Producer From Another Theatre A	I had a lot of fun chatting today!
Izumi	Same here!
	Let’s hold another exchange meeting like this one.
Producer From Another Theatre B	Huh? That shop’s decorated with hiiragi iwashi.
Izumi	Hiiragi iwashi?
Producer From Another Theatre B	It’s a custom for Setsubun.
	You don’t seem them that often these days though.
Izumi	Oh, really…
Producer From Another Theatre A	Alright, we’ll be heading on our way then.
	See you.
Izumi	Yeah, thanks for today!
	(It’s gotten pretty late…
	But I think I’ll make it in time for the last train.)
	*vroom, vroom*
???	…Oi.
Izumi	!?
Tasuku	So it was you, Director.
Izumi	Tasuku-san!
	That surprised me… I thought I was gonna get pestered by some weird guy since you pulled your motorcycle up beside me all of a sudden.
Tasuku	I could say the same. It’s dangerous wandering around at this hour.
Izumi	I had an exchange meeting with folks from some different Theatre troupes today.
Tasuku	Geez… it’s been rough around here recently, so be careful.
Izumi	Fufu. Thanks for your concern.
Tasuku	Anyways, we’re both on our way home. Hop on behind me.
Izumi	Is that alright?
Tasuku	If you’re not getting on, then I’m leaving you behind.
Izumi	Of course I’ll go!
Tasuku	Here’s your helmet.
	Hold on tight.
Izumi	Okay!
	…And so, I coincidentally bumped into Tasuku-san out of the blue and he took me back.
Guy	I see.
Kazunari	Smooth moves, Tax~!
Muku	He’s a prince atop a motorcycle!
Izumi	The exchange meeting was really worthwhile since I got to hear a lot of different stories.
	The shop also had a nice ambiance—ah.
	That reminds me, do you guys know what hiiragi iwashi are?
	They were used to decorate the store I went to yesterday.
Guy	I have never heard of those.
Kazunari	Hiiragi iwashi… that’s the Setsubun custom of using holly leaves and roasted sardine heads as decorations to ward off evil spirits, right~?
Muku	The thorns on the ends and the smell of the sardines repel the demons… I see!
Guy	If it’s a Japanese tradition, then I would love to display one at my bar as well. But I suppose the strong smell would make it unsuitable for a restaurant.
Izumi	Ah, but the hiiragi iwashi at the shop yesterday wasn’t an authentic one. It was a replica.
Muku	Oh yeah! It’s written that you can make them out of felt or origami too.
Kazunari	I see~!
	In that case—.

Guy	Should I stick this here, Fushimi?
Omi	Yeah. With this amount of glue—.
Muku	Huh? Where did the sardine’s eyes go…!
	*door opens*
Tasuku	What the? It’s really loud in here.
Izumi	Ah, Tasuku-san.
Kazunari	Nice timing, Tax~!
	Hey, hey. Join us!
Tasuku	What do you mean?
Izumi	All of us are making hiiragi iwashi to decorate Guy-san’s bar with right now. Feel free to join in too, Tasuku-san!
Tasuku	You’ve already got enough hands on deck even if I don’t help out, don’t you?
Kazunari	C’mon, don’t say that!
Guy	Seeing as we have all the materials, I would be grateful if you made one too, Takato.
Muku	I’d love to see the hiiragi iwashi Tasuku-san makes as well!
Omi	We have a ton of felt.
Tasuku	…If all of you say so, then I can’t say no.
Kazunari	Tah daaah!
	Behold, my hiiragi iwashi! How does it look?
Muku	Wow… it’s just like one you find at a store!
Guy	Indeed. It is well-designed like merchandise.
	I except nothing less from Miyoshi.
Kazunari	Yours is supes realistic too, Guy-guy!
Omi	There aren’t many people who can make one this authentic-looking using felt.
Guy	Is that so? If possible, I wanted to make one cute and cartoony like Fushimi and Sakisaka’s though.
Kazunari	Are you done too, Director-chan~?
	Lemme see, lemme see!
Izumi	I think it came out pretty well?
Kazunari	Ahhh…
Omi	Err, how do I put it? It has an exquisite charm.
Izumi	That doesn’t sound like a compliment…
Muku	This floppiness is eye-catching!
Kazunari	And you, Tax~?
Tasuku	Mine’s like this.
	Well, I think it’s acceptable.
Kazunari	Ooh, yeah~!
	It’s neither good nor bad?
Tasuku	…Oi.
Kazunari	Chill, I’m just joking!
Tasuku	…
Chikage	Did you perhaps make that hiiragi iwashi, Tasuku?
Tasuku	Yeah. …Miyoshi said it looks neither good nor bad though.
Chikage	I don’t think that’s the case.
	Say, if you want to add a Tasuku-like arrangement, then why not make it light up?
Tasuku	Make it light up? Yeah, I don’t think—.
	…Wait, hold on.
	That might be a surprisingly good idea.
Izumi	(The meeting wrapped up nicely…)
	With that, today’s work is finished. I have the day off tomorrow, so I feel like getting a drink before I head home.
	(Since I’m in the mood, I’ll drop by Guy-san’s bar.)
	(Hmm, I wonder if it’ll be crowded~…)
Tasuku	...Director?
Izumi	Tasuku-san! We keep bumping into each other on the street, huh?
	Did you come for a drink too?
Tasuku	Yeah… Tsumugi and Chigasaki called me over.
	Are you by yourself?
Izumi	I’ve finished with my work, so I was thinking of throwing back just one glass.
Tasuku	Throwing one back… sounds good.
	We’re both here, so how about we drink together?
Izumi	I’d love to!
CHOICE 1: At the last exchange meeting… [+] Izumi I wanted to share what I heard at the last exchange meeting with you, so this is perfect. Tasuku I was curious about that too. It's not easy to get insight on the production of other Theatre troupes. Izumi I know, right! I plan to keep attending them if I get the opportunity since it’ll be great for both myself and the Theatre! Tasuku That’s all well and fine, but be more aware of the time and location. Give me a call first before you start heading home on your own. The previous incident was by chance… but I’ll come pick you up next time. Izumi Fufu. I appreciate it.
CHOICE 2: Even if it ends up late tonight… [+] Izumi I’m at Guy-san’s shop and you’re all going to be there too, so it’ll fine even if it ends up tonight. Tasuku Oi. Didn’t you just say you were only having one glass? Izumi That was the plan. But if everyone’s there, I think I can have a few more since it’ll be more fun that way. Tasuku Well, I’m sure those guys will get more rowdy since you came too. You can drink as much as you’d like. But don’t drink too much. Izumi Yeah, I’ll be careful!
Tasuku	Let’s head inside then.
Izumi	—Huh?
	Aren’t these the hiiragi iwashi that everyone made earlier?
	Guy-san really did place them all out as decorations.
Tasuku	With this many, I’m not sure if they're supposed to be warding off evil spirits anymore…
Izumi	I think yours was the one over here—.
	—Err, eh!? The hiiragi iwashi lit up?
	All I did was hold up my hand…
Tasuku	Ahh… I actually got some advice from Utsuki.
	I installed a sensor light feature so that it glows when someone approaches it.
Izumi	A sensor light!?
	On the hiiragi iwashi?
Tasuku	Having a street light is a good security measure for people like you who walk around late at night, right?
Izumi	That’s true, but…
Tasuku	Come on, let’s head inside.
	They’re waiting for us.
Izumi	R-right!
	(That’s Tasuku-san for you. His ideas are unpredictable…)

Anna