Dancer was the first to speak.
"In the right part of the painting, in the upper right corner, do you see that strangely balanced girl wearing tights? I think Ogi's the only one I need to explain this to, but this young lady-young girl, really-is modeled on me.
That's how old I was when I met Professor Kizu and Ikuo. If I hadn't en- countered Ikuo, and Professor Kizu hadn't observed it all, I wouldn't be here with you today.
"The events of that day long ago threw me off track of being a normal girl, so I didn't care anymore that I wasn't a quote-unquote average Japanese.
Which makes me all the happier that that memorable day has become part of the painting."
Ikuo sat there in a depressed silence. Ogi naturally couldn't grasp the whole context, so Kizu explained.
"Dancer, in tights there," he said, "and Ikuo, when he was a young boy, had a bit of a collision that I witnessed. A long time after that, when I met Ikuo, I remembered what had happened, and that led to our getting in touch with Dancer. Through this we got to know Patron and finally ended up moving here."
"Ogi needs a little more explanation than that," Dancer said. "There was an awards ceremony sponsored by a newspaper, and as one of the attractions I was hired to dance while a children's choir sang. I put on my costume and was about to appear onstage when I got entangled in one of Ikuo's creations.
He was one of the candidates for an award. It went right up inside my little skirt, so I was sort of hanging there in midair, hurt and embarrassed, and the boy glared at me with his puppy-dog eyes and I wondered how angry he'd be if the model was wrecked.
"The way I was standing was quite bizarre, a much harder pose to hold than a plié, but child though I was I decided to tough it out. We were back- stage, but it made me wish we were out on stage, under the spotlights.
"This painful yet wonderful situation was resolved when Ikuo threw his model on the floor and destroyed it, but I was left with regrets. Someday, I thought, I'd like to reenact that scene in front of an audience. I think that was the reason I continued dancing even after we moved to Hokkaido.
"After I moved to Tokyo, and Patron and Guide began looking after me, I had the feeling that eccentric people like them would understand my idea. That's the reason I continued working in Patron's office. When Profes- sor Kizu showed up with Ikuo I was certainly surprised, but happy too. I felt sure that my premonition was entirely correct-that being with Patron and Guide would open up a path for me. With Guide by his side helping out, Patron's power had made my dreams come true… And now in this trip- tych Professor Kizu has painted the day it all began."
Dancer stopped speaking and held her left hand, as if pushing against something heavy, out toward the small painting on the right side of the trip- tych. Everyone's eyes were drawn upward. Only Ikuo, after looking, turned his large, sunken eyes toward the nearby window and the trembling oak leaves with the sun shining through them.
"I'd heard from the young boy what that day meant to him," Kizu said, "but this is the first time I've heard what was going on in the young girl's mind.
I was just an outside observer, but it really was a special event, wasn't it… You've been able to meet again with Ikuo, but what do you think-would we be able to prepare a stage for you to use to finally express yourself the way you'd like?"
"I think you and Ikuo have already begun to do this for me," Dancer replied. "I'm an adult now, and I don't fantasize about being in the spotlight anymore. I just want to walk, once more, toward that great light I saw as a child.
"Now that you've recovered from your illness, Professor, I know you're doing everything you can to move in that direction-the summer conference, that is, that Ikuo's working so hard for. I have a feeling that Ikuo's going to make that event into something quite incredible. Patron's anticipating this, trying to figure out exactly where he stands. I don't think Ikuo's plans for the conference are entirely set, but they'll definitely include the Fireflies, right?
And won't the Quiet Women and the Technicians be in the mix as well?
"Even with the way you've built up the Fireflies, Ikuo, I don't think you'll be able to redo the Church of the New Man according to your own color scheme. Which means we have something quite extraordinary to look for- ward to, but what it is no one can say. So there's something I'd like to say to you, Ikuo, in front of everybody here.
"Ogi and I and the church office will do whatever we can to help you carry out your plans for the summer conference. We're in charge of taking care of all those who'll be attending, which includes staying in close touch with the Kansai headquarters, dealing with the media, negotiating with the town, consulting with the police about security-we're handling all of that. So even with the Fireflies on your side you won't succeed without our help. If Patron asks us to oppose your unilateral activities, we already have enough partici- pants that you'll be expelled from the Church of the New Man. As long as you understand this, we'll help you."
Ikuo bowed his large head, the shadows of the setting sun etching the tension on his darkly chiseled face. Very slowly he opened his mouth, only to say a few words. "I'm not planning anything with the Fireflies."
"We don't know what Patron's planning," Dancer shot back, "so we need to stay receptive, right?"
"That's right," Ikuo said.
"But you have found out more than anyone else about the Technicians and the Quiet Women. And you've been giving a lot of thought about how to deal with them, correct? I only hope you're not thinking of some stupid plan such as throwing your weight behind one side, or getting the two powers to compromise their positions. That's why I'm talking about your plans. I'm only going to say this once. That's where we stand."
Dancer's lips were slightly open in her flushed face. Ogi was silent, but his expression showed he agreed. Kizu was impressed by Dancer's frankness, though he detected a hole in her logic.
"I understand Dancer's intention of supporting Ikuo without taking sides with either the Technicians or the Quiet Women," Kizu said. "And I'm sure Ikuo is encouraged by this. But what would you do if, say, Patron agrees with one of these sects and throws his support behind them?"
Ikuo glared at Kizu, his eyes fairly burning. "You really think that's why he proclaimed his Church of the New Man?" Ikuo asked.
Just then Dr. Koga came in, banging the door shut behind him. While this conversation had been going on, the breeze from the lake had grown chilly, so Ogi went over to close the oblong windows. The windows weren't latched, so they each made two separate sounds as they shut, making a nice airtight seal.
In his usual youthful way Dr. Koga was wearing a T-shirt, one of the shirts Mayumi made to sell at the summer conference that had a print on it of Kizu's sketch in red and yellow of the wound in Patron's side. Dr. Koga strode right over to the painting on the wall, looked up at it, and then turned to express congratulations to the artist.
"It's amazing how well you were able to complete it, even though you're still recovering. I noticed the Technicians had a satisfied look on their faces after they helped hang it up."
"Every time they set up some new equipment somewhere-be it the Hollow or the Farm-they think they're racking up points, don't they?"
Dancer's face was still flushed, but her voice was calm. "It makes me wonder whether they think they can take charge of everything. "
"It's the democratic way, though, isn't it, for people to step to the plate and take responsibility?" Dr. Koga said, parrying her remarks. "And you have to admit it's nice they're happy about it. Professor Kizu, I'm not up on art very much, but isn't this a rather ambiguous design?"
"Before we hung it on the wall, Mrs. Shigeno and Ms. Takada came to see it," Ikuo said. "The Quiet Women seem rather cautious in giving their opinion."
"What about Patron?'