xxxHOLiC Rou 203 translation

[starlady]

Camera raws can be found here thanks to anonymous. Also, this chapter was ridiculously well timed, and in some ways so is my translation. Enjoy the equinox, all! 

!!! page 01
A special power dwells in the flowers and in this man--
Everything will be used for the sake of the existences he must protect.
--------------
!!! page 02
FX: Snip

Fox: Excuse me.

Watanuki: Hey.
--------------
!!! page 03
Welcome.

Fox: Um,
Um, here.

I tried making something new.

Watanuki: Tea castella, huh.

Fox: I baked them just as you said, but...
--------------
!!! page 04
Watanuki: May I eat them?

Fox: Sure.

FX: Nibble

FX: Pounding heart

Watanuki: Delicious.

Fox: Re--really?

I wonder if I should put them out in Father's stand.

Watanuki: Sure.
I'm sure he'll say that these are all right.

Fox: I'm glad--
--------------
!!! page 05
Watanuki: You really are something.
Selling the castella you made yourself to give your father a birthday present.

Fox: Huh?
Not at all!

I always picked him flowers or something until now,
But since there was something I want to give him this year…

Watanuki: What did you want to give him?

FX: Plopping down

Fox: An apron.
A new one, since the old one is wearing out.

Oh--
Oh!
But don't say anything to Father.

Since I said that I was going to put the money from the castella in a bank.

Watanuki: Yeah.
Of course it's a secret.

Before this, I didn't properly say thank you for bringing the oden stand to the store.
--------------
!!! page 06
Watanuki: Thank you.

Fox: I'm sure Father will be pleased.

FX: Blushing

Watanuki: Now then.

Shall I make preparations too?
--------------
!!! page 07
Doumeki: Sorry I'm late.

Watanuki: Did you visit your house properly?

Doumeki: Yeah.

Watanuki: What's with not telling me that you planned to stay over until today? 

Doumeki: You don't care about my parishioners.

Watanuki: But tonight it's all of your favorite things, isn't it?

Doumeki: Yeah.
--------------
!!! page 08
Watanuki: Since it's a birthday.
Yours.

But there's hardly any birthdays this unfitting.
March 3.

FX: Puffing

Watanuki: The doll festival.

Doumeki: The doll festival is the Jyoushi seasonal festival, isn't it?
It was the morning of the first day of the third lunar month, but later it was changed to March 3 so that it wouldn't fluctuate.

In the past it was thought that on the days the seasons changed it was easy for ill will to enter.
Its fundamental purpose was to be a "talisman."
--------------
!!! page 09
Doumeki: Besides, it's also called the peach blossom festival.

Watanuki: Because it's peach blossom season?

Doumeki: Not just that.

The third day of the third month of the lunar calendar is certainly peach blossom season, but--
--------------
!!! page 10
Doumeki: In the past it was believed that peach blossoms had the power to purify ill will,
Because they were absorbed into various Shinto rituals.

FX: Finishing off

Ill will was called "demons,"
And peach blossoms exorcise demons.

That's why Momotarou is a demon-hunter.

And that's why it's not just a festival for girls.

FX: Pouring liquid

Watanuki: Wasn't it pointless for you to go to college?
--------------
!!! page 11
Watanuki: So peach blossoms purify ill will,
Huh?
--------------
!!! page 12
Watanuki: I see.
If you think that, I won't say your birthday doesn't suit you.

FX: Rummaging

FX: Slowly

---

Until the Meiji reforms, the Japanese calendar was the lunar calendar that's still used throughout Asia to calculate the Lunar New Year/Spring Festival. This calendar was deemed un-modern by the government, which adopted the Western calendar and set the New Year in Japan as January 1, with the result that there's about a five-week discrepancy, depending, between the official and lunar calendars. So the lunar first month is February, which means that the doll/peach festival was originally at the beginning of April (as can be seen by the fact that the festival starts at the hour of the serpent, 9-11am).

Comments

[linaewen]

Thank you! I've been online constantly for several days, trying to find a raw of this chapter -- and to have it come with such an excellent translation, as well, is even better. Thanks to you and to the anonymous scanner!

[starlady]

Well, it helped that the pics were in such high resolution. You're welcome, surely!

[nokiirat.livejournal.com]

many thx to mysterious photo-taker.

thx for the translations, too.

[ariadnechan.livejournal.com]

*fangirl scream* Kimi gives Doumeki a ring!!!!!!
and i love to know about peaches blosoms! my B-day is the same day as Doumeki!!

ohh one chapter more and then we won't have nothing until June
;____;

But a ring!!!! now Dou must give Kimi a ring too and they will be married!!!

Ring = Tool

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

Perhaps the ring is an important tool that will be used later or something. I think that because when Watanuki spoke about 'preparations' for Doumeki's birthday, he looked kind of sad. And I don't think it's because he doesn't like him.

Re: Ring = Tool

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

That's a good point, and I wouldn't be surprised if you're right. Given that we'll have a 10-week break after the next chapter, I'm sure it'll end on a cliffhanger.

Re: Ring = Tool

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

Uh... Please, don't remember me that. Clamp is evil.

Anyways, thanks as always for your lovely translations~

Re: Ring = Tool

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

I was thinking... could the ring be related to the egg he's holding? Like... indirectly? Maybe it could help Doumeki's choice (or be the tool needed to make it).

[levels.livejournal.com]

What li_vox_il said. There's a feeling of doom and gloom just looming above him/them/the shop, and all this talk about ill will is surely not there just to explain the importance of Doumeki's birthday. Oh vey, vagueness *grins*.

Thanks for the translation, as always! And for anon, too.

[quivix.livejournal.com]

Thank you for this translation, I was waiting for this so much!

[ash-kah.livejournal.com]

Thanks a lot to the scanlator and for the translation ! Much appreciate ;)
Arf we waited quite a long this time... when Holic will be released in a mounthly mag it'll become torture xD

Oh and thanks for the links/explanations ^^

(waah Nyanko-sensei ^^)

[mairenn-k.livejournal.com]

Thanks a lot for translating! A huge thanks to the person who took the pictures, too.

I like how this chapter connects to the latest arc (about the red pearl, I mean). Watanuki's friends are getting older, while he himself is not. I think that's part of the reason why he's looking so sad.

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I definitely agree that's part of it too. It is sad. :-(

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

I thought about this as well. Maybe he's afraid that when his friends grow up, they'll change, set him aside and he'll be alone. Of course, Doumeki made a promise but Watanuki doesn't know about it.

[chibiyuuto.livejournal.com]

Thanks dear!

How adorable the little fox, I love him xD He wants to give his father an apron, awww ♥

And lol, Watanuki asking Doumeki all these question really makes them look like a couple.

Now March 3 makes even more sense for Doumeki, nice, Ohkawa.

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

You are welcome!

Yeah, even before Watanuki pulled out that ring there was a very domestic air to him asking why Doumeki hadn't called to say when he'd be back. Oh, boys.

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

Doumeki just randomly crashes at his place whenever he wants... Oh wait. He sent text messages. Still, seeing Watanuki making a fuss of it (when he normally doesn't care) on his birthday is sweet.

[herm-nefer.livejournal.com]

Thank you for sharing with us.

Is it me or is watanuki depressed the entire second part of the chapter? And it's an extreme close up of Doumeki but i think he's surprised to see the ring in Watanuki's hand.

When it was Watanuki's birthday Yuko wasn't allowed to give him anything, she said something about that look she gave him was all she could give. I don't get how Watanuki can give someone if he's in her position.

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

You're right, I forgot about that.

That thought increases my worries about what that ring is, and it's purpose. Maybe it belonged to Haruka, since Watanuki talks with him in the previous chapter. And Haruka (I think) is allowed to give gifts.

[herm-nefer.livejournal.com]

The thought that it might be Haruka's crossed my mind as well. Though that would mean that it was in the shop and that Yuuko would have met him before as a customer...which I don't believe is possible since Yuuko and Haruka said something along the lines of "we finally meet" in one chapter close to her end, where she i guess finally entered the dream wold.

Though...that brings to mind exactly why it is that grandpa sit outside Yuuko's shop in Watanuki's dreams and not some other location, maybe he was involved with the shop pre-yuuko.

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

There are already cp 204 spoilers and the answer to what that ring was. I didn't want to read them, but if you want to, go to Mangafox - xxxHolic forum.

[outou]

Personally, I was struck by how much Doumeki looked like my professor for Conflict Resolution, but the discussion on peach blossoms was interesting (who knew that Momotarou's origins had something to do with his hunting ogres?). Also, didn't Yuuko wear a striped kimono when she was arranging flowers?

Thanks for the translation!

[cutesherry.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the translation ^^
Strangely, while everyone is excited about the ring, the thing that most marked me was the splash page ^^;

[scottishrefugee.livejournal.com]

Oooh, thanks a lot for your translation! And thanks to anonymous for the scans, of course ^^

[sailoryue.livejournal.com]

its starting to get good, and now the manga will have only monthly releases after ch 204 D:

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

Here's the new chapter! =)

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=V2PYPFZJ (Not scanned by me)

I'm not asking for a translation but I'd love to know what it is about.
Thanks as always.

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

I am working on the translation. ;-) Sadly that isn't what pays the bills--but I should have it up some time tonight.

[li-vox-il.livejournal.com]

Wow! Thanks a lot! =)