Shueisha bunko 2, 250-301 (tankoubon 4)
Copyright © 1972-2002 by Ikeda Riyoko
Translation copyright © 2002 by Amy J. Lai

Disclaimer:   This is a non-commercial translation by a fan for fans.   No infringement of copyright to the author and publishers is intended.   Please do not cite any part of this translation without my permission.

KEY

abc	= speech
{{ abc }}	= thought
abc	= emphasis
...	= unfinished speech/thought, or pause
( abc )	= alternative translation, usually indicates literal meaning (lit.)
[ abc ]	= description of actions/sounds
< p.# >	= page number
#	= narrator's comments, author's footnotes
AJL:	= translator's comments

TRANSLATION BEGINS

< p.250 >
# On the morning of June 30, Jeanne was executed in front of a huge crowd of spectators.
Jeanne:	[ Eeek!   Let me go!   Damn it! ] Let go!   I'm innoceeennnt!   Damn you, bastards! [ strike! ]
Usher:	Ou- ouchhhhh!
Jeanne:	I'm innocent!   The Queen planned it all! [ gnaw! wiggle! screech! ]
Usher:	Yikes!
Jeanne:	Le- let go!   Damn! That Austrian woman is having a blast while I take all the blame!
Usher:	Arghhh!
< p.251 >
Servant:	Argh!   She's impossible!
Jeanne:	[ kick! punch! wham! ]
Officer:	Burn the brand on her now!
Jeanne:	[ scurry ... huff puff ... ]
Usher:	Yikes!   She's escaped!
[ Several men leap on Jeanne and drag her across the ground. ]
Jeanne:	[ Shriek! ] Damnnn!   You devilll! [ dress is torn from the shoulders: rippp! ] Go to hell, Austrian bitch!!!
[ Jeanne is branded with the letter "V" on the breast. ]
< p.252 >
Jeanne:	[ zingggg! ] Arghhhhh!   [ plop! ]
Officer:	One more on the shoulder!
Jeanne:	[ Arghhhh! ] Whore!   Die, Austrian bitch!   [ bite! ]
Usher:	Yikes!
Jeanne:	[ branded again: sizzle! ]
< p.253 >
[ Crowd watches intensely as Jeanne finally gives up and falls to the ground. ]
Jeanne:	[ plonk! ]
Ushers:	Whew!   What a terror! Pure frightening! How she can drain the blood out of you!
Officer:	Send her to the Salpêtrière prison at once!
Crowd:	Poor thing! So the Queen must have taken the necklace. Of course!   That woman must have been innocent!
# Thanks to her vicious lies, Jeanne has won the people's sympathy. Countless people lined up in front of the prison, waiting to catch a glimpse of her.
< p.254 >
[ At Versailles ]
Antoinette:	Why?   How could all the people and even the nobles go to see Jeanne! As if I'm the one to blame!
Oscar:	Indeed!   The nobles have left court precisely because Your Majesty refused their visits to the Petit Trianon.
Antoinette:	[ Ohhh! ]
# But the affair did not end there.
Guard:	[ click clack ] Oh my!
< p.255 >
Guard:	He- help!   Help!   That woman ... Jeanne has escaped!
Crowd:	That Jeanne has escaped from prison! [ Oh dear!   Wow! ] Oh my, really?   Wonderful! Jeanne's run away?   Ha! The Queen must have helped her get out! That's right!   After all, Jeanne took on all the blame for the Queen! The Queen's conscience must have gotten to her!   Woohoo!
[ At Versailles ]
Polignac:	Jeanne has escaped!? Who could have helped her get out of such a tight prison like Salpêtrière?
< p.256 >
Polignac:	She couldn't have done it without help from someone of considerable rank and military authority. Don't you think so, Colonel Oscar François, Comte de Jarjayes?
Oscar:	Ah!   What do you mean, Countess Polignac?
Polignac:	Don't you pretend you don't know! Why, your soldier, Nicholas de Lamotte, stole the necklace and ran out of the country. As his commander, why haven't you caught it during all this time? It must be because you're their accomplice, Oscar François!
< p.257 >
Polignac:	You must have used Jeanne as a lure to distract people's attention, so by the time everyone realized it, he's already escaped!
Oscar:	[ giggle ] Have you lost your mind?   Could it be your early menopause?   Ha ha ha ...
Polignac:	Me- menopause ... !   I'll tell His and Her Majesty that you're the culprit! I can make them do whatever I want!
Oscar:	Let's go, André, Rosalie!

< p.258 >
Rosalie:	{{ Mme. de Polignac really means it. With the power she has, it'd be easy to frame Oscar as the criminal.   Oh no ... }}
André	Hey, Rosalie!   [ notices Rosalie walking away ] Eh?
Rosalie:	Countess Polignac!   Mme. de Polignac!
Polignac:	Mme. de Polignac?   Why didn't you call me "Mother," Rosalie?
Rosalie:	Monsieur Oscar has nothing to do with this!   Please don't tell His Majesty!
< p.259 >
Rosalie:	I beg you!   Her Majesty would believe it if you said it! Don't blame Oscar for it!
Polignac:	In that case, Rosalie, would you come to the house of Polignac and call me "Mother"? Well, Rosalie?   If you do, I'll promise not to tell anyone.  Or else! Your heart can only belong to one place, Rosalie. Give it some thought.   You know very well how much power I have.
Rosalie:	Ohhh!
< p.260 >
Rosalie:	[ flashback to Polignac: If you want to save Oscar ... will you come to the house of Polignac and call me "Mother"? ] {{ Oscar will be framed as the culprit behind the Affair of the Necklace... }} [ flashback to Polignac: Will you call me "Mother"?   Call me "Mother"? ] {{ What a dirty trick!   How could you use this to make me to come to you!   Coward! }}
< p.261 >
Granny:	Rosalie, here's a letter for you!
Rosalie:	[ flip flip ] {{ Jeanne! }} [ Oh God! ] {{ Please tell me no one has read it. Oh, Jeanne!   I'm so happy to hear from your! No matter how you've become, how could I not miss you when we grew up together! Saverne ... it's so far way ... you must have gotten out safely ... Now you must be awfully regretting your own crimes. }}
< p.262 >
Rosalie:	{{ My dear Jeanne ... I hope you're living somewhere in peace and regretting your crimes. }}
[ In the streets ]
Crowd:	Hey!   Did you hear about Jeanne's book?   It just came out! Huh?   You mean that Jeanne from the Affair of the Necklace? Didn't she escape from prison?   Do you know where she is? I have no idea.   That's why it's interesting! Anyway, want to read it?   The first book is about the truth behind the Affair of the Necklace! [ Oh dear!   Whoa! ] Oh my, where is it? "How did the Queen make Jeanne steal the necklace?"   Hey look!
< p.263 >
[ At the Jarjayes ]
[ book falls to the floor: bang! ]
André:	The Memoirs of Jeanne Valois, book 2!   "The Scandals of Marie Antoinette"!
Oscar:	It's a list of the Queen's lovers.   Well, my name must be on there.
André:	[ Wow! ]   "Still unsatisfied after having male lovers, the Queen tempted women she liked to bed!"
Oscar:	Does she think I'm a fool?   How shameless!   It's all a bunch of rumors and lies!
André:	Oh my!
< p.264 >
Crowd:	Look, Jeanne's third book is out!   Yay, let's go and buy it! The way it is now, all the stores will be sold out soon! Ah, it says that handsome Commander of the Palace Guards is a woman! Yeah, Jeanne's book says the Queen ordered her to dress as a man! Well!   Just when we're struggling to get by, she's playing around with 10 men and women lovers! And having so much fun at the Petit Trianon!   That Austrian whore!
[ At Versailles ]
Antoinette:	How dare she ... make up such a horrid story! Just looking at it disgusts me and creeps me out!   This is porn! {{ But this is the best seller in France now, and people will believe everything that's written in the book. Oh dear, how frightening! }}
< p.265 >
Jeanne:	Take a look, everyone!   Have fun! "The Scandals of Marie Antoinette," book 4, book 5, book 6! Yes, oh yes!   I'll write however many you want! Now all the people are on my side! I'll make up whatever story I want! Whether it's sensational scenes that makes people screech, or the truths of lesbians! And the more books I sell, the more money I'll make!   Wa ha ha ha ...
Rosalie:	{{ Jeanne, oh Jeanne!   You devil! You have no regrets for what you did!   Oh ... }}
< p.266 >
[ At Versailles ]
Servant:	Your Majesty, the King and Queen! You simply cannot allow this to go on any longer!
Antoinette:	Hmm ...
Louis XVI:	Then send out the military to search for Jeanne and Nicholas' hideout.
Oscar:	Please assign the task to me, Oscar François! Nicholas was formerly one of my soldiers. Rather than let fools try to catch him, please let me do it! I beg you, Your Majesty!
Polignac:	Ha ha ha ... what splendid acting, Monsieur Oscar François!
< p.267 >
Louis XVI:	Very well, Colonel Oscar François de Jarjayes. I grant you full authority in all matters related to Jeanne and Nicholas.
Oscar:	Thank you.   I, Oscar François, will devote my life to the arrest of Jeanne and Nicholas!
[ At the Jarjayes ]
Granny:	My Lady, I heard that you've promised to arrest Jeanne and Nicholas!
Oscar:	Granny, I'll be very busy from now on!   I probably won't have any time to come home. Let me borrow André for a while.   If I need anything, I'll ask him to get it. André!   Where are you, André?
< p.268 >
Oscar:	André!
André:	Oh, Oscar!   It's Rosalie ...
Oscar:	{{ What? }} Rosalie!   You can't be serious!   Are you really going to the Polignacs? Rosalie!   What did Countess Polignac say to you?   Did she threaten you?
Rosalie:	No, eh, there's nothing.
Oscar:	Tell me!   Why did you want to go to the Polignacs all of a sudden?
< p.269 >
Rosalie:	There's nothing!   I just grew fond of Mother, even for someone like her. Besides, the Polignacs have greater wealth and power!
Oscar:	[ ..... ]
Rosalie:	[ sob... ]   Please let me go!
Oscar:	Don't ... try to fool me!   You're not like that ... But I won't stop you.   Countess Polignac is your birth mother after all.
< p.270 >
Rosalie:	{{ Ohhhh!   Monsieur Oscar, oh Monsieur Oscar! }}
Granny:	Miss Rosalie!   Your welcoming carriage from the Polignacs is here!
[ Dressed in splendid colors, Rosalie descends from the stairs. ]
< p.271 >
Rosalie:	[ exchanges look with Oscar ] {{ Monsieur Oscar ... Even though you're woman ... I still love you ... I love you to death ... So please understand. I'll never forget ... even if I became Rosalie de Polignac ... I can never forget ... the days at the Jarjayes, the happiest time of my life ... and my first love! }}

< p.272 >
Oscar:	[ removes portrait from wall: rattle rattle ] [ blows away dust: puff ] This is my parting gift to you, Miss Rosalie.
Rosalie:	Monsieur Oscar?
[ Rosalie begins to cry.   Oscar grabs her hand and gives her a hug.]
Rosalie:	Oh ... !
< p.273 >
[ Oscar kisses Rosalie on the cheek. ]
Rosalie:	[ runs away: oh ... ] {{ Adieu!   Adieu, my youth! Adieu, my happiness!   Oooh! Adieu, my beloved Jarjayes family! }}
< p.274 >
[ Oscar continues to stare out the window. ]
André:	Oscar ...
Oscar:	{{ She is as lovely as a spring breeze, with cheeks blushing like roses, suffusing the furniture, walls, and everything around her in an aroma of wildflowers ... following my every step in the most adoring way ...}} Yet as a woman, why can't I do anything for her?
André:	Oscar, Rosalie gave me this before she got in the carriage.
Oscar:	Huh?
< p.275 >
Oscar:	[ opens envelope ] It's a letter ... from Jeanne! Saverne ... so there she is! André, get ready!   And pick a few men from the troops! {{ Rosalie, how worried you must have been, to have a sister who is unrelated to you by blood and yet a criminal. Thank you, Rosalie.   Thank you very much! }} Get a carriage!
Granny:	What is Monsieur Oscar up to now?
Maid:	What's the rush?
< p.276 >
[ At Saverne ]
Nicholas:	Jeanne!   Oh dear, there's a huge crowd of troops coming this way!
Jeanne:	What!?   {{ It's Rosalie!   Rosalie betrayed me! }} Calm down, Nicholas!   Look, isn't that what we planned for in cases like this?
Nicholas:	Oh, that's right!   Let's go, Jeanne!
[ Outside Jeanne and Nicholas' house ]
Oscar:	There!   Let's go!
< p.277 >
[ slam! ]
Oscar:	Nicholas!   Jeanne!   You have nowhere to hide!   Come out and show yourselves!
[ Nicholas appears near the windows, with one hand holding a candle and another holding a rope, while Jeanne stands by looking on. ]
< p.278 >
Nicholas:	Heh heh ... Commander, it's been a while, hasn't it. You're still quite impressive.   What do you think this is? [ waves the end of rope ]
Oscar and soldiers:	Wah!
Oscar:	What's this smell?   Why, it's Berthollet dynamites!
Nicholas:	Indeed, Commander!   How clever you are! Berthollet dynamites are the most destructive invention of the year. Just one light to the fuse will bring the buildings tumbling down any time. If you don't want to be blown to pieces, tell all of your soldiers to get out!
< p.279 >
André:	Oscar!
Oscar:	Er ... all right.   Soldiers, leave the building.
André:	Oscar!
Oscar:	Didn't you hear me?   I said get out!
[ Soldiers leave the room. ]
Nicholas:	Heh heh ... so women do pick up on things more quickly. Jeanne, shut the front doors.
[ Oscar leaps on Nicholas. ]
Nicholas:	Yikes!
< p.280 >
[ Candle falls to the floor: bang! ]
Oscar:	[ punch! ]
Nicholas:	[ tries to kick Oscar in the face: whoosh! ] Damn it, woman!
Oscar:	[ crunch! ]
< p.281 >
Jeanne:	Nicholas!
Oscar:	[ twist! ]
Nicholas:	[ gets hurled across the room: plunk! ]
Oscar:	[ points pistol at Jeanne and Nicholas ] [ huff puff huff puff ] If you think I'm just a woman, you're dead wrong! After all, I'm your commander!
< p.282 >
Nicholas:	[ Er ... ]
Oscar:	Well, get up!   Both of you!   Turn around and put your hands behind your back! Walk towards the front door!
Jeanne:	It's Rosalie, isn't it.   She told you where we were.
Oscar:	There's no other choice.   Don't you understand Rosalie's pain?
Jeanne:	{{ Oh ... }}
< p.283 >
Jeanne:	Things were great in the old days. Mom, Rosalie, and I were dirt poor, but there were lots of love and laughs. Rosalie has always been the kind of girl who's quiet and stands in the shadow. Only when she's gone did I realize her kindness for the first time.
Oscar:	[ ..... ] I'll definitely tell Rosalie what you said. Let's go!
Nicholas:	[ notices candle on floor and winks to Jeanne: ding ding! ]
< p.284 >
Nicholas:	[ kicks candle towards Oscar: konk! ]
Oscar:	Yikes! [ looses hold of pistol ] Oh shit! [ reaches for pistol, but is held back by Nicholas ] Let go, coward!
Nicholas:	What did you call me?
Oscar:	[ kick! ]
Nicholas:	Arghhh!
< p.285 >
Oscar:	[ punch! ]
Nicholas:	[ slap! whack! ]
Oscar:	[ is thrown onto the floor: plop! huff puff ... ]
Nicholas:	Ha ha ... Aren't you quite a show-off. What makes you think a woman could win over a man with bare hands?   Ha ha ...
Oscar:	Arghhh, damn it!   Let go!

< p.286 >
Nicholas:	Jeanne!   I'll hold her down, and then you stab her in the throat with the sword!   Hurry!
[ candle rolls towards curtain: crackle ]
Jeanne:	Ha ha ha ... after all, you're a woman. You're bound to make mistakes when you get too sentimental.
[ curtain bursts into flames: spark! zing! ]
Oscar:	[ Eghhh ]
Jeanne:	Damn, damn it!
Nicholas:	What are you doing?   Hurry!
[ Jeanne stabs but misses. ]
Oscar:	[ Eggghhhh ]
< p.287 >
Oscar:	An- André!   ANDRÉ~~~!
[ Outside the house ]
André:	Eh?   Oscar is calling me!
Soldiers:	Huh?   Are you sure?   We didn't hear anything.   Ha ha ha ...
André:	No, I heard her for sure!
Soldiers:	Don't move, you fool!   You'll be knocked out!
< p.288 >
Oscar:	[ huff puff huff puff ... ]
Jeanne:	Okay, this is it!   Ha ha ...
André:	[ slam! ] Oscar! [ beats Jeanne with rifle ]
Jeanne:	Ah! [ plunk! ]
< p.289 >
Jeanne:	[ discovers she has stabbed Nicholas by mistake ] Arggghhhhh!   Nicholas!
Oscar:	Hurry, let's get out!   The dynamites are about to explode!
Jeanne:	Nicholas!   Nicholas!   Oh Nicholaaaaas!
< p.290 >
Oscar:	[ grabs Jeanne ] Hey, let's go!
Jeanne:	Stay away from me!   Ha ha ha ... I'm no fool! [ backs up towards the balcony: bump! ] You've come for my money, haven't you! No one can have it!   It's my money!   Ha ha ha ...
André:	She's crazy!
Oscar:	Come over here now!   Your dynamites are going to explode!
Jeanne:	Stay away from me!   Go away! [ slip! ] Ah!
< p.291 >
Jeanne:	[ falls down the balcony ] Arggghhhhh!
André:	Hurry, Oscar!
Soldiers:	Commander!   Are you okay?
Oscar:	Everyone, get away from the building now! It's about to explode!
< p.292 >
[ Image of exploding building: zzz... BOOM! ]
< p.293 >
[ Oscar and soldiers run for cover. ]
# Thus, the Affair of the Necklace came to a close, leaving only a strong doubt and resentment of the people towards their Queen and the royal family. So who was the one that helped Jeanne escape from prison? Was it the King's brother, Count Provence, who plotted against the King and Queen in order to the usurp the throne secretly? Or was it the King's cousin, Duke Orleans? The truth remains unknown to this day.
< p.294 >
[ Night. In the Versailles gardens ]
Antoinette:	Fersen!
Fersen:	Lady Antoinette!
Antoinette:	I missed you so much!   Oh I ... I ...
Fersen:	Lady Antoinette!
< p.295 >
Antoinette:	What should I do?   Tell me! I finally understood what the people thought of me during the Affair of the Necklace. It's not just the Third Estate.   Even in the Second Estate, there are people who hate me so. Why, oh why?
< p.296 >
Antoinette:	What should I do, Fersen?   I feel so lonely ...
Fersen:	Lady Antoinette, please stop seeing Countess Polignac and her friends. Think of Count Mercy and Oscar, people who truly cared about you ... people who thought nothing of their own rank and background, but only of you since you were a princess ... people who always offered their sincere opinions despite being called nosy ... Please leave Countess Polignac and return to Oscar, Count Mercy, and your true friends!
< p.297 >
Antoinette:	Oh dear ... why haven't I listened to their good advice? How could have I been so blind and careless? How I wish to have Count Mercy and Oscar come back to me, just like the old days.
Fersen:	Then you should return to the Palace, hold court, and call back the nobles. Now there are no one except the nobles who will support you. Also, you should not appointment ministers on your own again.
Antoinette:	What else?
Fersen:	Stop spending money and playing around.
Antoinette:	I won't spend money recklessly again.   No more new dresses and diamonds!
Fersen:	And don't put on any more plays.
Antoinette:	All right.   What else?   What else, Fersen?
< p.298 >
Fersen:	[ notices Antoinette's crying and hugs her ] Oh Lady Antoinette! If only I could stay with you and protect you! Lady Antoinette, oh Lady Antoinette!   I'll be here! You won't have to suffer alone any more ...
Antoinette:	Fersen, I'm scared ... I already have nothing left to lose ... Please don't leave me ... ever ... I'm so scared ...
< p.299 >
[ At the Polignacs ]
Polignac:	Pardon?   Did you say that Her Majesty declined the invitation to the Polignacs' dance? Wh- why?   How strange!   Her Majesty is surely acting odd these days, suddenly leaving the Petit Trianon and going back to the Palace and all. Maid!   Bring Rosalie to my room now!
[ At the Jarjayes ]
Granny:	Ah, my Lady!   Welcome back!
< p.300 >
Granny:	People are all talking about your great achievement!
Oscar:	I'm back, Granny.
General de Jarjayes:	Good work, Oscar! The unofficial news is that you'll be promoted from colonel to brigadier.   Bravo!
Oscar:	Brigadier?   Ah, if only André could be promoted too.
André:	Oscar.
[ Door locking: click click ]
Oscar:	What is it, Granny?   Aren't you quite vigilant about locking the doors tonight.
Granny:	Oh, Lady Oscar, you haven't heard, have you. It's always been like this these days.
< p.301 >
Granny:	Actually, there's a thief who has been targeting the nobles' houses. He's dressed in black and wears a black mask.   And he moves awfully fast. No one has seen his face yet, but he's already the talk of court. People call him the Black Knight.
Oscar:	Black Knight!?

END OF PART 2