Scenario:Gabriel - Hope

Hope

Gabriel watches Michael act in a play about Leon, the Magus of Melancholy's life and learns of the curse his father left him. Now knowing the reason why Leon is fixated on talent, she visits the museum to view his works and runs into the painter himself. She asks Leon what art means to him, and he responds—a curse.

---

Gabriel has immersed herself in painting with the goal of submitting a work of her own to the Sazak Open Art Exhibition.

Through Uriel, she's given a chance to visit the studio of Leon, a famous painter. But upon arriving, she gets a little more than she bargained for.

Leon: You have no talent for painting. I suggest you reconsider submitting any of your work to the open exhibition.

The caustic dressing-down, though discouraging, has inspired Gabriel to prove herself through her own work.

Michael: I see. Sounds like you had an unpleasant time.

Uriel: I'm sorry you had to go through that, Gabriel. If I just minded my own business, none of this would've happened...

Gabriel shares the details of her eventful visit to Leon's studio with the others at Uriel's Kitchen.

Between classes at the acting school, Michael is present as well, rounding out the group of retired primarchs.

Gabriel: Don't be sorry, Uriel. Thanks to you, I now have the opportunity to think about what art and painting mean to me.

Raphael: Have you found an answer?

Gabriel: I don't know yet. But I'm sure about one thing—I like to paint. That's why I do it.

Gabriel: I want my work to be good, but I'm not going to obsess over its quality. I can't believe he'd tell me to give up just because he thinks I don't have talent.

Uriel: Yeah, that's some pretty warped thinking, if you ask me. What's the harm in pursuing what you want to do?

Gabriel: Now I finally understand how you feel, Michael.

Michael: How I feel?

Gabriel: You know, about your Mole Troupe. You all did what you wanted and stuck with it until the very end.

The Mole Troupe is a four-person acting company based in Sazak whose membership includes Michael.

Previously, the group caused a stir by showcasing a play by the Mole Troupe, for the Mole Troupe during the Sazak Festival.

Raphael: I heard you four were quite pleased with your performance... despite all the egg throwing from the audience.

Gabriel: I'm going to take a page out of your book, Michael, and stay true to my own passion. I've had enough with testing the waters!

Michael: ...

Uriel: Haha, that's the spirit, Gabriel! You deserve a heaping helping of stew today!

Gabriel: Heheh! Thank you, Mother Uriel!

Uriel: I-I thought I told you to stop calling me that! It gives me the creeps!

Michael: Hey, Gabriel. Could I have some of your time after lunch?

Gabriel: ?

Upon finishing their stew, Michael takes Gabriel to a building known by many in Sazak.

Gabriel: This place... This is the Sazak Theater, right?

Michael: I'm doing a rehearsal performance of my play today in the recital hall. I want you to see it.

Gabriel: Wow, that's so cool! Are you sure it's okay for me to watch?

Michael: Of course. It's part of my class, so you'll be there as a visitor.

Michael: I've been spending a lot of time studying in the museum and library to get the part right just for this day.

Gabriel: You've been going to the museum too? Michael, what's this play about?

Michael: It's titled "Leon－A Life." It's a play about the life of Leon Mondune.

Gabriel enters the recital hall and blends in with the teacher and a handful of students. She takes a seat at the end of a row.

Leon: I loved my father's paintings.

On stage, Michael basks in a beam of light as she loses herself in the role of Leon.

Leon: He was an artist—a painter. Though not an awfully talented one. As he struggled, and he often did, so too would our family.

Leon: With what little money we had, my father enrolled me in the Sazak School of Fine Arts.

Leon: As much as I loved his paintings, I, myself, had no interest in art.

Leon: My brush was heavy, as if it were weighed down by my father's blood.

Leon: But no matter what, I kept my head down. I kept painting. And before I knew it, I was graduating at the top of my class.

Leon: Graduation project in hand, I returned home for the first time in a long while—only to be greeted with contempt.

Leon's Father: Why! Why would the gods choose you!

Leon's Father: Why would they bless you with talent... yet give me nothing!

Leon: My father cursed me, and he would continue to curse me until he took his own life.

Leon: And so... my brush grew heavier.

Michael: Thank you.

Gabriel is overwhelmed by Leon's life story as it unfolds in the play. It goes on to recount his failures and triumphs before coming to an end.

Michael: Sorry to keep you waiting, Gabriel. I got caught up receiving feedback from my teachers.

Gabriel: That was spectacular, Michael. I felt like I was watching the real Master Leon.

Michael: Thank you... but I still have a ways to go. I've been scolded plenty of times for my shallow understanding of the character and the work, not to mention my technique.

Gabriel: That notebook of yours... Did you buy another new one?

Michael: Ah, yes, I did. It doesn't take long to fill one up when you write down everything you learn like I do.

Gabriel: I see. I can tell you're really putting your all into acting.

Michael sighs and turns to look straight at Gabriel.

Michael: Gabriel... The reason I performed "The Detective of Venase" during the Sazak Festival was because I liked the Mole Troupe.

Gabriel: Michael, what are you...

Michael: I did it for myself, for my own satisfaction. Recognition didn't matter. I had never felt so much passion as I did on that stage.

Michael: But now... I've come to realize that acting for others—for the audience—is just as wonderful as acting for myself.

Gabriel: !

Michael: As far as being a thespian, I still have nothing. I'm merely a girl peeking into the depths of a world of professionals with fear in her eyes.

Michael: I won't comment on your decision, whatever you choose. I just wanted you to know about the life of Leon, the painter... and of Michael, the actor.

After parting ways with Michael, Gabriel visits the Sazak Museum of Art.

Gabriel: This season's exhibition... "Leon, The Magus of Melancholy."

Gabriel draws a deep breath before embarking on a tour of Leon's work. She takes her time admiring each piece.

Gabriel: "The Man Coughing Up Red." Leon literally put his blood and sick into making this. A true masterwork of despair.

Gabriel: "Darkness." The things one can do with black shading, I had no idea...

Gabriel: "The Night the Birds Fell..."

Leon: This is who I am.

Gabriel: I acted like a naive child...

Gabriel: Wholly unaware of the hardships the artist endures, putting a voice to whatever came to my heart.

Leon: Yes, and nobody is born knowing the taste of stew.

Gabriel: M-Master Leon! Why are you here?

Leon: Why else? It is my job to stay abreast of how my work is received.

Leon: Your dedication to learning is admirable, but remember what I said—you do not have the talent for art. I advise you stick to being an observer.

Gabriel: I think I know why you're so fixated on talent. It's because of everything that happened with your father.

Gabriel: You believe to pursue something without having the talent for it only invites ruin. That's why you tried to stop me.

Leon: Perhaps I underestimated your thirst for knowledge. But I suppose your wit makes things easier for me.

Leon: Talent comes with responsibility. Those with it are obligated to make the best of their gift for the sake of those without.

Leon: Do you have any idea how many people in this world want for a beauty such as yours but never achieve it?

Gabriel: ...

Leon: I will not force you, but your destiny is to be a model. It is what you should be doing.

Gabriel: If I could just ask you one thing.

Gabriel: Master Leon... what is art to you?

Without skipping a beat, Leon gives her an answer.

Leon: A curse... One from which one never escapes.

Visitor: It's you! You're Master Leon, aren't you?

Visitor: Oh, I knew it! I'm a big fan, sir, huge!

Visitor: I just can't get enough of the kind of hopeless anguish that exudes from your work! Can I get an autograph?

Leon: Water flows downstream, does it not?

Visitor: Um, I'm sorry, what?

Leon: Oh, my apologies. Of course you can.

As soon as Leon opens himself up to autographs, a crowd of people take notice and line up for a signature of their own.

Gabriel: ...

While he signs away, Gabriel gazes at his profile, as if searching for something profound behind his grin.

Hope: Scene 2

As Leon outlines the responsibility talented individuals have to society, Gabriel reads up on his life in the library. She ponders over his pathos and has an epiphany while taking a break with the other primarchs, leading her to choose a path forward.

---

On a moonless night, Leon sits in a bar located on the outskirts of Sazak.

Bar Owner: You coming to my bar at a time like this could only mean one thing—you're having trouble with your submission to the exhibition, ain't you?

Leon: Depends on what you mean by "trouble." I have a subject, but the model's yet to give me her consent.

Bar Owner: Is that so? Well, you've always been the disciplined type. Just don't go crazy and kidnap the poor soul to make her model, got it?

Leon: ...

Bar Owner: Hey, I was just kidding! Don't forget, people like you because you're an artist with some sense!

Man: Nothin' left but to run to the bottle on a day like this!

Bar Owner: Oh boy, and here comes nonsense! And he already reeks of booze!

The inebriate is Falsch, a thirty-six-year-old former child prodigy in acting, and member of the now inactive Mole Troupe.

Falsch: Leooon, my maaan. I owe Gabriel a lot, you know? Like, I'm indirectly indebted to her, you get me?

Falsch: Do your old pal a favor and be nice to her, all right? That's all I'm asking!

Leon: Never afraid to play the "old pal" card, are you? Always audacious, Falsch.

Leon: It's hard to believe you were once that young boy performing on the street. I invested so much in you and your abilities...

Falsch: You sure did. And I threw it all away by breaking up the Mole Troupe.

Leon: I can't fathom why you'd squander such talent. Your foolishness defies reason.

Falsch: Talent-obsessed old fart...

Leon: What did you just say?

Falsch: Oh, nothing! I really do feel bad about all that, honest.

Falsch: Anyway, back to you. Leon, are you seriously gonna keep that up until you die? You know, that "responsibility of the gifted" thing you're always on about?

Leon: Without question.

Leon: I stand atop the bodies of my art school classmates, my teachers, my peers, the many nameless amateurs, my father...

Leon: The artists who died in despair over my talent... and their lack thereof. I have a duty to them.

Falsch: Hmm... See, to me, with my no shine and no job, that all sounds pretty dang impressive.

Falsch: But, Leon Mondune... You're not so weak as to let yourself become buried by the misery of others, are you?

Leon: ...

The next day, Gabriel holes herself up in the library, voraciously consuming any material she can find on Leon.

Gabriel: From art journals to competitions, assessment of Leon's artistic abilities seems to be uniform across all forms of critique.

Michael: The Magus of Melancholy, the genius who moves hearts with his grim subject matter...

Michael: Care for some help?

Gabriel: Michael! How'd you know I was here?

Michael: It was easy; all I had to do was trace your line of thought. Interested in learning about Leon, I see?

Gabriel: You know me too well. Yes, and if I keep going, I might learn enough to play him myself.

As the pair peruse through each book, Gabriel deepens her understanding of the enigmatic artist.

Gabriel: "Young Leon was more or less compelled into attending art school by his father, a man with an intransigent fixation on painting."

Gabriel: I see. So everything you were acting out on stage was based on reality.

Michael: Leon is obsessed with talent. He stifles himself... and puts brush to canvas for the sake of others.

Gabriel: ...

Gabriel: Master Leon... what is art to you?

Gabriel: Maybe it is a curse like he said.

Gabriel: But if that's the case, then what is his pathos?

Leon: Talent is an overflowing force. Pathos spills from the art of a true prodigy. It is striking, terribly obvious even to laymen.

Michael: Could that also be the curse? Perhaps he despairs over his own talent and curses himself for having it?

Gabriel: That wouldn't be too far-fetched of an assumption, but I don't know...

"The Night the Birds Fell" and the self-portrait Gabriel saw in Leon's studio run through her mind.

Gabriel: How does he do it... Why is his art so captivating?

Uriel: Uri-ello! What's cookin', you two?

Raphael: Lower your voice, Uriel. This is a library.

Uriel: Oops, my bad. This boxed lunch I made really put me in the picnic mood.

Gabriel: How did you guys know I was here too? Am I that easy to figure out?

Uriel: Never mind that, I brought food! How 'bout you take a break and come eat with us in the plaza?

Once the primarchs find a nice spot in the plaza, Uriel lays out the spread from the box he's prepared.

Gabriel: Mmm, yummy! Whatever this braised dish is, it's just bursting with flavor!

Gabriel: Thank you, Uriel. Your cooking always manages to hit the spot.

Michael: You've brought paper containers, boxed lunch partitions, plates... This is all awfully thorough preparation for a lunchtime picnic.

Uriel: Oh, um... Well, to tell you the truth, I've been thinking about selling boxed lunches starting this fall. Raphael's been helping me get things ready.

Gabriel: Boxed lunches? I'm sure your customers would love that, but that sounds like a lot of work.

Uriel: You bet it is! I gotta come up with a new menu that tastes good cold, think of variety and nutrition, and figure out pricing. I've got a lot on my plate.

Uriel: But, hey, this is the path I've chosen. Just like how you chose yours, right, Gabriel?

Gabriel: Right. I chose my own path...

Raphael: ...

Michael: Raphael? Why are you sitting still and staring at the food like that?

Raphael: I am modeling for Gabriel. I thought perhaps "Man Looking at Lunch" would make for a good painting.

Gabriel: Hmm... There's a philosophical air about you, but I think in a painting you might come across as lacking in substance.

Raphael: What!

Uriel: Haha! That was cold, Gabriel! Look, you made Raphael freeze up!

Gabriel: Was it? Maybe some of Master Leon's harshness rubbed off on me?

Raphael: No matter. It will take a little more than that to stop me from trying time and again.

Raphael: After all, we strive for the stars precisely because we cannot hope to reach them.

Gabriel: You keep trying... even when faced with futility?

Gabriel gasps and rushes to grab the flyer for the Sazak Open Art Exhibition out of her pocket.

Raphael: Ah, yes, the painting with the birds falling from above. As depressing as it is, I am hard-pressed to avert my gaze from its brilliance.

Gabriel: Yes, it is hard to look away from. This is it... I think I've figured out Master Leon's pathos!

Michael: Gabriel? I take it you've had an epiphany of some sort?

Gabriel nods, then turns to her friends with a smile.

Gabriel: Thanks to you all, I've found my way forward.

Gabriel: I'm going to go professional.

Hope: Scene 3

Gabriel reveals to Leon her intent on becoming a professional painter after identifying the hope depicted in his works, and vows to release him from his curse by succeeding as an ungifted artist. Still without pathos, she admits she has much to learn. Leon relents and takes Gabriel on as his pupil. On the day of the exhibition, Leon's submission, a colorful portrait of Gabriel, shines bright in the gallery.

---

Days later, Gabriel returns to Leon's studio.

Leon: Gabriel. Come to learn more about painting?

Gabriel: No. I'm here to show you my pathos.

Leon: Oh? So you have brought a work of yours for me to see?

Gabriel: ...

Without a word, Gabriel walks past Leon and into his studio.

There she begins to transform.

Gabriel: Behold. This is who I really am—my true form.

Leon: Well, color me shocked. It is no wonder I sensed an aptitude for modeling in you.

Gabriel: I will be your model, Master Leon. Make me the subject of your painting.

Leon: So you've decided then? To put your talent to use for the good of the world?

Gabriel: You misunderstand. This will be the first and last time I model for you. Think of it as a token of appreciation for helping me make up my mind.

Gabriel: I have made my decision... and that is to become a professional painter.

Leon: What?

Gabriel: I realized something about your pathos.

Gabriel: The sentiment you depict in your painting, "The Night the Birds Fell," isn't despair.

Leon: !

A gentle smile pulls at Gabriel's lips as she strokes her wings.

Gabriel: I did not wish for these wings.

Gabriel: They have been with me from the very beginning—just as your gift has been with you.

Leon: ...

Gabriel: Though I never wanted to soar the skies, I fly. Though you never wanted to create, you paint.

Gabriel: The birds in your painting aren't falling. They chose to stop flying. They've been freed from their duty, haven't they?

Gabriel: Your self-portrait the other day was similar. By snapping his paintbrush, the elderly man was abdicating himself from the obligations of his talent.

Leon: What is your point in explaining my work to me?

Gabriel: Master Leon, your paintings brim with hope. Am I wrong?

Leon's brows lift in curiosity, but his expression quickly returns to normal.

Leon: Say that they are. The presence of hope does not change the fact that they are scenes of despair.

Leon: Only death awaits a bird who has stopped flying. And illness will see to it that the old man suffers the same fate.

Gabriel: Right. That may be what happens in the real world.

Gabriel: But in the world of your paintings lies your truest desire. That is why they move hearts.

Gabriel: Reaching for the unreachable is painful... but in hope there is beauty.

Leon lets out a long, drawn-out sigh in response to Gabriel's analysis.

Leon: Gabriel, I must say, I did not foresee your talent for art critique. But my evaluation stands—you do not have what it takes to be a painter.

Leon: If your aspiration is to make painting anything more than a hobby, then I cannot—

Gabriel: Master Leon, why not let the birds fall in the real world too! Why not snap your brush!

Leon: Excuse me?

Gabriel: If I were to make it as a painter with my so-called lack of talent, don't you think that would be enough?

Gabriel: Wouldn't it prove that being gifted isn't everything? That there's no need to hold yourself captive to talent?

Leon: D-don't be absurd! You look to become a painter just to clip my wings? Is that what you are telling me?

Gabriel: I can't very well do it by myself, of course. Don't let these wings fool you—I'm nothing but a flightless chick.

Gabriel bows deeply toward Leon.

Gabriel: I beg you, please. Teach me everything you know about painting.

Leon: !

In shock, Leon stares at Gabriel, wide-eyed.

Leon: A will to paint driven by a desire to liberate me from my talent. Art made with a sentiment so farcical cannot hope to stir the soul.

Leon: Gabriel, tell me... do you know who you are as a person?

Gabriel: I'm not sure I do. What I know is that I relish the time I spend letting my brush roam. That's all.

Gabriel: But I've come to understand that there are things I don't yet comprehend. That's why I want to paint.

Gabriel: I want to keep my wings tucked away, walk with my feet planted on the ground...

Gabriel: And find what pathos awaits me just ahead. I want to discover myself.

Leon: ...

Gabriel: What do you say?

Leon: There's nothing to say.

Leon: I feel as if I'm being asked if I'm a painter in the presence of a god.

Leon mutters, then picks up his brush. He takes to his canvas, painting with gusto.

Gabriel: ...

Gabriel: (I suppose that's his own way of saying he'll do it?)

Ever the talented model, Gabriel holds her pose and watches closely as Leon's brush hops to and fro.

A few days have passed, and the day of the Sazak Open Art Exhibition has arrived.

Gabriel pays a visit to the venue with Michael at her side.

Michael: I take it you decided not to submit anything?

Gabriel: Yes. I couldn't produce a piece up to my own standards.

Michael: I see. That was your choice and I think that's just fine.

Michael: Look at all of these people. Leon's work brings in the crowds.

Gabriel: It sure does. Let's line up to get a look.

The pair follow the crowd, and as the people fall away, a single portrait comes into view.

The painting is of a beautiful woman, wings spread wide, light filtering down through the clouds above and shining upon her.

Around her, birds and cherubs flutter about—not a hint of misery to be found.

Visitor: This is a work by Master Leon? I never would've thought he'd use such lively colors!

Visitor: That said... it's quite charming.

Michael: In a word, it's magnificent. She looks like a goddess of salvation.

Gabriel: She does, doesn't she? I'm almost sure I wouldn't have been able to depict that in a self-portrait.

As a wry smile forms on Gabriel's lips, she turns to leave.

Michael: Done looking already?

Gabriel: I have an assignment to do. I need to head back to the studio to finish it.

Gabriel: Besides, I'm feeling... inspired.

Michael: Are you now?

Gabriel: Some day, I want to paint a portrait that transcends Master Leon's vibrant work—and one day I will.

Without looking back, Gabriel walks straight to the exit and leaves the exhibition behind.

In the corner of Leon's painting, written in small letters, is the title of his work...

"Hope."