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Introduction
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Jeu de paume — Court Tennis (Part Two) is the second part of the sixty-first chapter of Jun Mochizuki's The Case Study of Vanitas.
This article contains plot and/or ending details for The Case Study of Vanitas.
Read at your own risk.
Summary[]
Dante clicks his tongue in annoyance and mutters under his breath what they are doing here. He, Johann, and Riche enter the office proper. As Noé and Riche politely exchange bows and Dominique behind pets a contented Murr, Vanitas as he lounges on the couch greets the three Dhampirs by announcing that he has a job for them. The three regard him with confusion. Vanitas, holding up his hand in an “okay” symbol and grinning brightly, proclaims that he’ll pay any price they ask for in exchange for getting him into contact with Marquis Machina.
At this, Orlok, Nox, Manet—who have just finished tidying up the desk—and the Dhams regard him with surprised shock. Meanwhile Noé leans over Vanitas and, after pausing to recollect, identifies him as the “clanking individual” from the bal masqué, seen by Veronica de Sade’s side. Vanitas is mildly bemused by Noé’s descriptor for him but confirms this as correct and further elaborates on said Vampire’s identity. Sir Francis Varney, the Clockwork Fiend Marquis Machina, the oldest Vampire on the Senate. Noé wonders with awe if he is older than even Ruthven, but Vanitas counters this by saying that in terms of the Senate and compared to the seniority of his fellow members, Ruthven is like a “li’l baby chick.” Noé stops in his tracks. Immediately his mind conjures up the absurd mental image of Ruthven as a peeping baby chick, and he is spellbound by it.
Vanitas continues: Machina’s reputation is that of an eccentric but he is also known for occasionally being something of a sage. Due to this as well as his venerable age, it is almost certain that he at one point supported the Queen alongside the Comte de Saint Germain, the man he truly is interested in. Dominique understands immediately then why he decided to go to the Dhams. Noé, knowing absolutely nothing, outright and shamelessly asks what they mean. Vanitas and Dominique both stare at him blankly for this. Vanitas scolds Dominique for Noé’s naivety which he is certain is due to her overprotective spoiling of him, and Dominique grimaces unable to even deny it while Noé remains confused. Nox and Manet whisper to one another, noticing how Vanitas and Dominique are surprisingly amicable with one another despite their first encounter in that very office.
Vanitas begins to explain Dhampirs and their position within society, all the while leveling the three Dhams in the room with a quiet and calculating gaze. Dhampirs are a race shunned by both humans and Vampires, with Dham hunts formerly being a frequently occurrence. Physically more powerful than regular humans, but unable to interfere with the World Formula the way Vampires do, they are a perfect cross of both races and thus belongs to neither. Dante, Johann, and Riche all stand huddled up together, stances defensive, protective, nervous as Vanitas continues. It’s impossible for them to live among humans as their eyes will turn golden out of nowhere and give them away. Riche grasps at her glasses with a distressed expression and Johann his own countenance dark and shadowed pushes up his glasses. Dante, the only one of them not wearing glasses, stares forward blankly, refusing to react.
Manet laughs derisively and mocks them for being half of each race, while Nox disgustedly sneers at them for their perceived sneaky and dirty nature. Noé stares in shock at the two Vampires’ intensely aggressive reaction. Dominique meanwhile expression exasperation in her mind, regarding their hateful prejudice for the Dhams’ state of being and nothing more as outdated and unattractive. Out loud, she continues the explanation. Marquis Machina is the protector of Dhams, his lone powerful figure serving to shield the entire race from the disdainful eyes of those around them. Even the most high-ranking Vampires are hesitant to harm Dhams who have been Marked by Machina. Vanitas adds on, at least openly they do. Dominique confirms this. On top of that, the Catholic Church desiring to avoid conflict also will not blindly interfere. Vanitas concludes that, in summary, the Dhams are the strongest connection they have to Marquis Machina, and he punctuates this with a snap of his clawed fingers. With a cocky smirk, Vanitas declares he’ll give a proper greeting to Dante’s “guardian” as the Dham’s regular customer, and dares the other man to name any price he’d like for it.
Dante angrily grits his teeth. He scoffs at the idea of Machina being his “guardian,” to which Johann quietly cautions him. Dante responds by repeating what he had already said before—Dhampirs only ever ally with other Dhampirs. Noé regards him with surprise. At this outburst Nox and Manet immediately explode with tens of times more force and anger, snapping at them for speaking without Orlok’s permission, that they wouldn’t be allowed in there at all in normal circumstances. At their yelling Riche flinches, making Dante stand in between her and Orlok while Johann wraps a comforting arm around her shaking shoulders. Vanitas doesn’t react to this while Noé is surprised. Orlok takes a deep breath while the three Dhampirs stare at him cautiously. He speaks slowly: he could never understand the thought processes of someone as dignified as Marquis Machina. But if he hasn’t given Dhams the right to exist, “Paris’s current problem” as he describes it would not exist, nor would the Dhampirs he is seeing before him be “fouling the air” in his office. Noé is silent at this. Orlok’s words stick with him, particularly the phrase “right to exist.”
A drawn-out, messy, chaotic, raucous argument involving nearly all parties erupts. Vanitas asks if an incident is occurring relating to Dhams and despite his servants’ protests Orlok confirms two stray Dhams to be in the center, thus he sent Dante, Johann, and Riche to investigate. Vanitas remarks that any Dhams outside of Machina’s protection could be killed at any time. Dante realizes his underlying tone and snaps at the human to stay out of the matter. Vanitas eggs him on while Manet reprimands Dante for speaking out of turn again and Vanitas for provoking him. Nox proclaims that the two weeks given to the three Dhams was too forgiving as still no results have turned up and Manet adds on that he and his sister can do the deed instead, while Vanitas mutters about how irritating they both are. Riche though petrified pleads for leniency as they still have three days until the agreed-upon date, making Johann caution her worriedly. The Vampires snap at her for interrupting. The noise builds and builds and builds, voices beginning to blend with one another until they and the words they carry become indistinct. In the cacophony it becomes impossible to tell Vampire from human from Dhampir. And it continues until…
“Excuse me.”
Noé, completely silent for the entire time up until then, raises his hand. All pause and look to him.
Noé asks frankly why no one is referring to Dante, Johann, and Riche by their names.
Everyone in the room stares in stunned and blank shock.
Vanitas bursts out laughing. Nox, Manet, and Orlok, still clearly agitated and angered, are baffled. As Vanitas buries his amused snickers in his palm, Noé apologizes for derailing their discussion, but comments that the method they had been using to refer to the Dhams—this one, that one, the other one—makes the task far more confusing than necessary. Vanitas cheekily comments that he’s only ever referred to as “human” himself, which Noé counters that as the only human present there’s not real confusion to be had. Dominique is just as stunned as all others as Noé continues that between the three Dhams and the refusal to use their actual names, his attempts to follow the conversation just resulted in his getting lost.
Noé turns to Dominique. He asks her if she has been properly introduced to Dante, Johann, and Riche yet. Dominique stops. She is shocked. Noé continues obliviously that he believes going through proper introductions will let the conversation flow more smoothly, while Dominique comes to a realization in her mind. She has been assuming that she has been different, that she treats Dhams without prejudice unlike others of her kind. But her exasperation at witnessing the other Vampires’ indiscriminate hatred of Dhampirs was only ever expressed internally. She was still silent at Orlok and his servants’ venomous words towards the three Dhams. She recalls as well when she first met Dante, her first immediate instinctive reaction, despite her efforts to remain unbiased, was undoubtedly one of disdain. Upon realizing that, contrary to what she had been thinking of herself, she is no better than any other in that regard, Dominique bows her head as her face flushes with shame.
Dante snaps at Noé to shut up.
Noé and Vanitas look at him in surprise.
Dante, more agitated than either of them have ever seen him, asks with a hiss if he’s doing that on purpose or if he’s truly just idiotic.
Characters[]
- Dante
- Riche
- Johann
- Noé Archiviste
- Vanitas
- Dominique de Sade
- Murr
- Marquis Machina*
- Parks Orlok
- Nox
- Manet
- Veronica de Sade*
- August Ruthven*
- The Teacher (Mentioned only)
- Faustina (Mentioned only)
(*) - Denotes that the character did not appear physically, but as a part of another character's memories.
Terms[]
Trivia[]
- Jeu de paume is the French name for the game tennis, which originated in France. It translates literally to "palm game."[1]
- In Volume 11, this chapter is combined with Mémoire 61 Part One to make a single consolidated version of Mémoire 61.
References[]
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| v - e - t | The Case Study of Vanitas Chapters |
|---|---|
| Parisian Excursion Arc | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 |
| Bal Masqué Arc | 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 |
| Hunters of the Dark Arc | 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 |
| The Beast of Gévaudan Arc | 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 34.5 • 35 • 36 • 37 • 38 • 38.5 • 39 • 40 • 41 • 42 • 43 |
| Amusement Park Arc | 44 • 45 • 46 • 47 • 48 • 49 • 50 • 51 • 52 • 53 • 54 • 54.5 • 55 • 55.5 • 56 |
| Miel Incident Arc | 57 • 58 • 59 • 60 • 61 • 61.5 • 62 • 62.5 • 63 • 64 • 65 • 66 |
| Intermissions | 15.5 • 46.5 • 51.5 • 60.5 |
| Volumes | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 |
| Omake | Vanitashu no Karute • Romance is a✰LOVE MISSION • Confessional Counseling Office |
| Other | Author's Notes |