Translucent Silver Hair (Page 18)

//Panel 1//
SFX:
CRACK! RATTLE RATTLE
//Panel 2//
Charles:
The family that inhabits the blue mists and twilight, and lives forever…

End —January 1972—

Notable rightward slanting of the carriage in Panel 2, to illustrate how physically at odds the carriage's inhabitants are with the townspeople on the outside. Then in the next panel, Marybel is also shown veering away off-kilter, while the "reaction shot" of Charles shows him in balance and straight-up (though obviously stunned).

In Panel 4 we see that the rose Marybel holds (the one the middle-aged Charles has given her) wither away in her hand. In this episode, we are never told what Marybel and Edgar are, except for not aging at all over a long time and this very subtle hint.

Moto Hagio say in her interview that she got inspiration for the "Poe no Ichizoku" from "きりとばらとほしと (Mist, Roses, and Stars)" by Shotaro Ishinomori - published in 1962 when Hagio was still in middle school. I never read this manga, but Hagio was making a reference to this work when she depicted the rose dying in Marybel's hand.

In the interview Hagio says Ishinomori had a number of manga stories with time travel motif. In another interview she mentions "きのうはもうこない　だがあすもまた… (Yesterday comes no more, but neither tomorrow…)" by Ishinomori, which she says shocked her. The story is about a girl from the future who keeps coming back to the present, each time growing bit by bit. Hagio was intrigued by this whole concept. And she was looking for similar stories when she encountered "Mist, Roses and Stars". This turned out to be a story about a girl who turned into a vampire, told in three parts - past, present, and future. It was not a traditional gothic horror - rather it was from the vampire's perspective, and the same girl, never aging, appears across a vast time expanse, just the opposite to the structure of "Yesterday comes no more, but neither tomorrow…"

When Hagio thought of drawing a vampire story, she didn't want to do a horror story where a vampire approaches its victims with evil laughter, and she remembered "Mist, Roses and Stars", where a vampire was beautiful and sympathetic. Thus "Poe no Ichizoku", a multi-layered saga that covers a vast time range, was born.

In the interview Hagio mentioned Anne Rice. She saw the movie first, then read the Vampire Chronicles. She says she was relieved to find that "Poe no Ichizoku" predates the Chronicles by two years.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 17)

//Panel 1//
Charles:
You know it? But who taught it to you?
Song:
“So beautiful that the gods…”
Marybel:
Oh—
//Panel 2//
Edgar:
Let's go, Marybel.
//Panel 4//
Marybel:
My brother Edgar is calling me. The carriage is here; I have to go.
//Panel 6//
Song:
“…stopped time.”
//Panel 7//
Marybel:
Goodbye.
Charles:
Mary—
//Panel 8//
Charles (song):
And so the girl lives on, tomorrow,
//Panel 9//
Song:
And the next day…
//Panel 10//
Song:
…her lovely silver hair caressed by the breeze…forever a young maiden…

Then when Edgar appears, together with his family, Charles realizes that the impossible is true...and that Marybel and the girl within the song may be the same person. In fact, by singing this song to him over and over, she has been dropping hints to him all along, perhaps hoping that he would understand.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 16)

//Panel 1//
Charles:
Ah, you must be her daughter.
Wasn't your mother named Marybel…?
//Panel 2//
Marybel:
…Oh, I’m not sure. I am Marybel.
I…don’t know anything about my mother who gave birth to me.
//Panel 4//
Charles:
Then she must have given you the same name.
…I knew your mother.
I was a young boy at the time…
//Panel 6//
Charles:
My word, you’re smiling, aren’t you? Is it odd for this old man to be reminiscing on his first love?
Marybel:
No…not at all.
It’s an old story, isn’t it?
//Panel 7//
Charles:
Yes. It was thirty years ago…
You…you’re the spitting image of your mother as a little girl. I…
//Panel 8//
Charles:
That’s right…She taught me a song. It went like this:
“There was a girl, long ago…”
Marybel:
Oh, I know that one!
Song:
“…with translucent silver hair…”

(In a weird though irrelevant way, this scene brings me to mind of the initial encounter of Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle. I had to double-check to confirm that Marybel wasn't selling him flowers!)

It's also interesting to see how Hagio adeptly takes her time, teasing Charles with all these coincidences: the name "Marybel," the lullaby...making it slowly dawn on him that she could be...

And how quickly he reverts back to his own boyhood! He never forgot the song...in some ways, time stopped for Charles as well...It's such a tender, poignant scene.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 15)

//Panel 3//
Charles:
Twenty five years of marriage.
I ought to bring home some flowers…
Spring roses would be nice. Or perhaps hawthorn?
//Panel 7//
Charles:
…Excuse me, miss…
//Panel 8//
Marybel:
Oh? Yes?

I just love the different views of the middle-aged Charles making his way through the marketplace: He's dapper, resolute, genteel, yet weary...The market bustles with activity, but one young girl sits by herself, sniffing some flowers.

Considering Edgar's previous hovering over his sister, I wonder how she could be sitting there all alone...what happened to the others...but at least this gives Marybel and Charles the chance to make (re)acquaintances.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 14)

//Panel 1//
Charles:
Was it the next morning? Or the morning after that?
SFX:
SHRIE-E-E-K!
//Panel 2//
Charles:
Wh-what’s happened? What’s going on?
Mother's Voice:
Oh, Anna…Anna…Anna…
SFX:
WAIL
Maid:
Shhh—come here, Master Charles.
//Panel 3//
Charles:
My sister and the tutor…
They ran off together last night!?
//Panel 4//
Charles:
That idiot tutor!?
//Panel 5//
Charles:
But then…why wasn't I…at that time…
//Panel 6//
Charles:
Quick-witted enough to spirit Marybel away like that?
For a long time—I regretted this.
//Panel 7//
Charles:
A first love, once gone… is frozen in time.
Within my memories, the young girl never grows up.
As for my own lifetime, it trickled on…ticking away months and years.
Charles’ wife:
I’ll see you later, my darling. What time will you be back?
Charles:
I won’t delay. It’s our Silver Anniversary, after all.
Charles's narration:
Thirty years have gone by…

Despite the obvious turmoil in Charles' household caused by his sister's departure, it's still admittedly a huge relief for me to be back among people who shriek and display emotions, rather than lurk and glower! Still, Charles can never be completely in the moment any more..compared with his free-spiritedness he enjoyed before he met Marybel...From now on, he will always feel torn, and you can see him lost in his thoughts in Panel 6. What happened to the boy who ran around shouting joyfully, blowing into a blade of grass?

Then, he grows older and settled. Life seems to have treated him well, but still he has a somewhat sad air about him...

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 13)

//Panel 1//
Charles:
Marybel!
Marybel!
//Panel 4//
Charles:
You are leaving…
//Panel 5//
Marybel:
Thank you for your friendship, Charles.
//Panel 6//
Charles:
But I—Marybel…you know, I love you…
Edgar:
Let’s go, Marybel.
//Panel 7//
Marybel:
…Goodbye.
//Panel 8//
Charles:
That was the first time I set eyes on Marybel’s family.
//Panel 9//
Charles:
The beautiful lady who took in these two siblings…and the tall Baron…
//Panel 10//
Charles:
Before Spring turned to Summer…
Marybel was gone.

Whose shadow is cast down on the cobblestones in Panel 1? Somehow it's a disturbing image. There are effect lines to indicate movement; this is Charles, from this highly unusual vantage point, running to catch up with Marybel. How much time has gone by? The leaves on the tree in the backbround of Panel 3 still look lush and verdant, but the clothing worn by Marybel and her parents is dark and heavy-looking...definitely not spring-like. I personally wondered as to whether there were other get-togethers between Charles and Marybel from the time of their initial meeting and her departure. But there is no strong indication either way.

In any case, she is leaving, and in Panel 3 she looks nearly as forlorn as Charles. In Panel 5 she manages a very stiff, formal acknowledgement of their friendship. And in the next panel, he once again confesses his feelings toward her...while in the background Edgar looms, with eerie, menacing eyes.

In Panel 7 Marybel once again shows the happy, sweet expression she bore when they first met. In the next panel, in complete contrast, we see Edgar in the foreground, with his glowering parents behind him...all staring at Charles, with creepy, otherwordly expressions. The message is clear: You are not one of us.

The final panel confirms that yes, it is still Springtime when they abruptly depart. How many days could they have possibly occupied that house? What is their rationale in coming and going this quickly?

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 12)

//Panel 1//
Marybel's Song:
So beautiful that the gods stopped time for this young girl.
…They stopped time…
Charles:
…That is what you were singing the first time I saw you.
Marybel:
Ahh…That’s a really old song Old Hannah used to sing to us.
//Panel 2//
Marybel:
At bed time, when my brother and I were small, that’s what she sang to put us to sleep, as a lullaby.
Marybel's Song:
…And so the girl…lives on, tomorrow…
Marybel:
Then Old Hannah…passed away…
//Panel 3//
Marybel:
And then Mother and Father were kind enough to become our new parents.
Marybel's Song:
And the next day, and the next day, her lovely silver hair…
//Panel 4//
Marybel's Song:
…caressed by the breeze…forever a young maiden…
//Panel 5//
Charles:
Teach me that song.
//Panel 6//
Song's lyrics:
…translucent silver hair…

Here Marybel reveals a little bit of her past. The full story will be given in a later episode, but it is very interesting to see that Hagio had her grand saga all planned out by the time she penned her very first piece.

In Panel 1, there's something placid and reassuring about the sight of two people chatting under a tree; it is a good locale for opening up and sharing. On the left hand side of the panel we see a giant profile of Old Hannah, and on the right, a broken hourglass (I will admit that my husband had to tell me this was an hourglass) to represent the stoppage of time for the girl depicted in the song...and for Marybel herself, though Charles of course doesn't realize this.

The lines from this song that Marybel is singing are sprinkled throughout many of the pages of this story. Incidentally, since these lines were often truncated and in differing variations, and compounded by the inherent word-order differences between English and Japanese grammar, the consistent translation of these lyrics was a real headache.

As for the full lyrics, it is interesting to consider them as a lullaby...Would a typical child find a song about a girl who never grew up soothing, or disturbing? In Panel 3, Charles is scrambling for a reply. Although in Panel 5, he is now asking Marybel to teach the song to him. It's as if he knows this is the only part of Marybel that will remain with him.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 11)

//Panel 1//
Charles:
…Um, why don’t you open any windows? It must be dark inside. Like you have someone ill in there.
//Panel 2//
Marybel:
It doesn’t matter. None of us ever loves a house or a town, not my father, my mother, my brother nor myself.
//Panel 3//
Marybel:
We never stay in one place for very long.
//Panel 4//
Marybel:
We’re always traveling. We won’t be in this town for long, either.
Charles:
…Marybel!
//Panel 5//
Charles:
Well, then, you’ll be leaving someday…for somewhere else?
Marybel:
Someday, yes.
Charles:
Don't leave!
//Panel 6//
Charles:
Don’t leave! I won’t let you—please don’t go! Because I love you!
//Panel 7//
Marybel:
…There was a girl with translucent silver hair…
//Panel 8//
Marybel's Voice:
So beautiful…

In the first panel, Charles finally blurts out his base anxiety—that her family is a bit different, in a way that has already been remarked upon unflatteringly by his own household. Marybel's response is not defensive or angry, but yet she is resolute in explaining the family's typical pattern of leaving places quickly. In Panel 2 does she say, "いいのよ" in sympathy with Charles, or to brush him off? It's like she's saying, "This is how it's always been done; don't question it." Or is that her way of convincing herself that she has no choice in the matter? It is hard to read her facial expression: She appears stoic, guarded, but perhaps also feeling some sympathy for Charles and his obvious distress at her imminent departure. However, in Panels 6 and 7 she seems uneasy and conflicted with his sudden attachment (though it's likely that deep down, she's pleased).

This is a very poignant moment in the story, where we have a glimpse of a very lonely existence.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 10)

//Panel 1//
Maid’s voice:
They say he was walking toward the old mansion on the edge of town.
Charles:
That’s all? What’s wrong with that!
Maid:
You don’t understand, do you!?
That's exactly why…it's frightening!
//Panel 3//
Charles:
Your brother has been there the whole time.
Marybel:
Does it bother you?
Charles:
I don’t like it.
//Panel 4//
Marybel:
Then let's hide where he can't see us—this way.
//Panel 5//
Charles:
........

First of all, the perspective changes to a mid-range shot of this mythical stranger who walks down the street. Emotions are heightened by the expressionistic depiction of his flowing cape and the streams of wind curving across the page, along with the warped cobblestone road and buildings hovering on the left side of Panel 1.

Suddenly in Panel 2 it's daylight again, and we move to a brightly-lit closeup of Edgar...but the undulating wave of his scarf is a carryover from the previous panel, and his eyes bear a watchful expression. It turns out that as lovely as the scenery is in the gazebo with roses all around, Edgar's intense scrutiny cannot be ignored.

It is also interesting to see that Edgar appears to be overprotective of Marybel, and Marybel defies him a little bit here. She is much more open to external relationships. We will see.

Check Panel 5: something is on Charles' mind, which he's hesitant to express.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 9)

//Panel 1//
Edgar:
You…come back tomorrow…
//Panel 2//
Charles:
“Come back tomorrow…” And he’s the same age as me…
But as if he was a hundred years older…staring at me…with those cold, blue eyes…
//Panel 3//
Mother's Voice:
Charles…you ought to come home earlier.
We all worry about you!
//Panel 4//
Maid:
Master Charles, is it true you were playing with the girl from the old mansion on the outskirts of town?
//Panel 5//
Charles:
That's none of your business. I won't have it if you say anything to Mother!
Maid:
But still! That’s a strange household…Not even a single window open, did you know?
//Panel 6//
Maid:
As if something bad was going on there…the whole house is dead quiet.
Ah, did you hear? There is talk about someone walking down the road…!
//Panel 7//
Charles:
Everyone walks down the road.
Maid:
But in the middle of the night!
The priest saw it from his window…
A very tall man in a cloak…
At least, it couldn’t be anyone from this town…


In Panel 1 Edgar says to Charles "きみ…また　明日ね." Fourteen year olds don't typically address each other as "kimi". This second person pronoun has variety of uses, but it is often used by much older people when someone in the superior position speaks to someone inferior. "また　明日ね" would normally mean "see you tomorrow", but Edgar in this instance is trying to get rid of Charles. It comes across as very condescending, so I decided to translate it as above. Charles thought to himself that Edgar sounded a hundred years older than he, which, we would later learn, is the case.

If you live forever like Edgar and Marybel do, how does that affect your personality? In this story, it seems like Marybel remains at age 13 mentally as well, but Edgar appears much older than his physical age of 14. Matt Thorn asks in his paper "Adolescent Liminality in the Manga of Hagio Moto": "Hashimoto does not tell us why Edgar and Alan are fourteen. Why not ten? Why not seventeen? Why, for that matter, are so many heroes and heroines in Japanese manga between the ages of thirteen and sixteen?" He explains the significance of the ages of the characters. I think he makes a very good point.

In other impressions, note the suddenly faint outlines of the roses in Panel 2, once Edgar has intruded and spoiled the sweet time Charles and Marybel had been having.

Another interesting building perspective in Panel 3, perhaps emphasizing the house's statuesque proportions (and further reinforcing that Charles's family is wealthy?).

I happen to love the round-eyed, gossipy maid as a character. You get the impression that she's been frightening Charles all his young life with her tales, and only now he is finally getting old enough to rationally counter her melodramatic outbursts.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 8)

//Panel 1//
Charles' Narration:
I know that you know
I know that you know
Marybel:
Heee...Oof!
//Panel 2//
Charles:
Oops!
Charles' Narration:
…how sweet the girls are in Springtime—
//Panel 3//
Charles' Narration:
…how their eyes laugh and lure you in for a kiss.
//Panel 5//
Edgar’s Voice:
Marybel!
//Panel 7//
Charles:
…Who’s that?
Marybel:
What is it? That’s my big brother, Edgar.
//Panel 8//
Marybel:
Did you call me? What is it?
Edgar:
The evening breeze isn’t good for you. Come back inside.
Charles:
That’s…her big brother…

I've never had a protective older brother (or an older brother, period), and I always wanted one--but sometimes they can be too meddlesome! In fact, even from a distance, Edgar looks subtly menacing, perched up on on the second floor of the rose-covered "home". He is sincerely concerned for Marybel's health, but you can also read an edge in his voice, a desire to protect and isolate his sister from outsiders such as Charles. Maybe Charles, being a little brother himself, cannot relate to Edgar's watchfulness over his sister, or perhaps there's something else that stirs some anxiety in him? He's saying literally: "The older brother...that's him..." As if something doesn't sit quite right with the situation.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 7)

//Panel 1//
SFX:
RATTLE!
//Panel 2//
SFX
SLAM!
//Panel 3//
Charles:
Ahaaa…something happened with my sister…
Well, anyhow, I'll make my escape as well…
//Panel 4//
Charles:
Marybel.
//Panel 5//
Charles:
Marybel, tell me about yourself.
Marybel:
Ye-es?
Charles:
I want to know about…for example, when you were little.
//Panel 6//
Marybel:
When I was little? But…I’ve forgotten all about it. It was so long ago.
What about you? [Note 1]
Charles:
Me? From the time I was born…I’ve lived in this town…I have an older sister…
//Panel 7//
Charles:
The time of year I like best is Spring.
//Panel 8//
Charles:
But now, what I like best in the whole world…
//Panel 9//
Charles:
…is you…! Hey, wait!
Marybel:
HEE HEE HA HA HA
Charles:
Marybel!

[Note 1] Charles tries to find out Marybel's personal history, but she skillfully turned the tables on him to avoid the subject. It is a very critical survival skill for her, and it hints that she isn't as innocent as she looks.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 6)

//Panel 1//
Charles' Narration:
Amongst the roses of an overgrown garden, the conversation ebbs and flows…
With our cheeks flushed and our chests nearly bursting…
//Panel 2//
Mother:
Did you know a family moved into that old mansion on the outskirts of town?
//Panel 3//
Mother:
Baron Portsnell…supposed to be rather eccentric. He hardly bothered making acquaintances [Note 1] and there was not one maid within the household, I heard.
Father:
Fallen gentry, I suppose.
//Panel 4//
Charles:
But that girl wore a pretty Greek-style dress [Note 2]. It shimmered in the wind like a haze of heat. [Note 3]
//Panel 5//
Father:
Charles, you are applying yourself to your studies, aren’t you?
Charles:
Yes, Father.
//Panel 6//
Tutor:
Uhm…cough
//Panel 7//
Charles:
But then, the next afternoon…
We didn’t hear my sister’s horrid piano playing.
Tutor (SFX):
FIDGET FIDGET FIDGET FIDGET [Note 4]

[Note 1] Original text reads "あいさつはおざなり" , meaning "the greetings were just formality." In Japan, you are supposed to pay visits to your new neighbors with simple gifts when you move in to a new house.
[Note 2] There is no direct clue to tie this episode to a specific time, but the fashion indicates 1795-1820. Moto Hagio was studying Fashion Design before her debut as manga-ka. In "Marmalade-Chan" (Weekly Shojo Komikku April 1972), the main character, a fashion designer, says "A dress from 1801 - for the woman the high waist line dress is the most feminine. I like the silhouette from this era best." It seems like Hagio's own opinion, too.
[Note 3] The original text reads "かげろうが風のように見えたよ", which literally means "mirage looks like wind."
[Note 4] "いらいら" - this is an onomatopoeia, describing someone losing patience and becoming irritable. Those onomatopoeia make the Japanese language very rich, but they also make life as a translator very difficult.

I happened to translate the family name "ポーツネル" as "Portsnell." Portnell is an actual family name, but it would be "ポートネル" in Katakana.

You will see this consistently throughout this work, but another remarkable quality in the illustration--besides the physical perspectives of some of the panels, with their unusual angles and shapes to emphasize a building's height above ground or open space, for example--is the amazing attention to detail as well as historical accuracy of physical objects such as clothing, furniture and architecture. Everything seems to have been accurately researched to fit in the time period--for example, the tutor's china coffee cup in Panels 5 and 6, and the ornate room furnishings. Fabrics are depicted in painstaking, minute detail. And the time Hagio has spent drawing dozens and dozens of roses! Many illustrators employ "shorthand" to tell the reader, "You are supposed to be seeing a field full of flowers here," but Hagio presents a visual feast of rich, loving detail.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 5)

//Panel 1 //
Charles:
…Love surely hides deep within the growing bosom of a young girl…
And calls out to me…sweeter than any breeze, or lyric…
//Panel 4//
Charles:
When did you come here? …This house has been vacant for ages.
//Panel 5//
Marybel:
The day before. My name is Marybel.
//Panel 6//
Charles:
I’m Charles. I’m fourteen.
//Panel 7//
Marybel:
Hmmm. The same age as my brother Edgar.

Look at Panel 1. A hero or heroine surrounded by flowers is a cliche in shojo manga, but here it is in context. Charles' eyes are superimposed to indicate that this is the view seen from his viewpoint. Shojo manga also feature large, intricate eyes. Panel 3 is made up of two sets of eyes to show their eye contact -- the composition is in reverse of Panel 1, and you can see that it represents Marybel's viewpoint. These are visual techniques that emulate cinematic effects - the close-up of eyes dissolves into a long shot of a person (Panel 1), then cuts to the close-up of the face (reaction shot), which then cut backs to Charles' face.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 4)

For those unfamiliar with the Japanese comic format, let me give you a quick lesson. Unlike American comics, you read from right to left, top to bottom. I'll number each panel to indicate the order in my translation.

//Panel 1//
Charles:
I’m fourteen.
Every day I study at home
//Panel 2//
Charles:
with a fussy tutor for a companion.
//Panel 3//
Charles:
In the afternoons, we hear the sound of a dreadful sonata and he becomes restless.
//Panel 4//
Charles:
It’s my older sister, Anna, who’s playing.
Tutor:
Ah, ahem…
Charles, finish reading this, shall we?
//Panel 5//
Charles:
My sister is seventeen, beautiful.
SFX:
SHUT
//Panel 6//
Charles:
What’s really beautiful is…Springtime!
//Panel 7//
Charles:
And the afternoons are free…
I blow on a blade of grass, run around, yell at the top of my lungs…
And I sing a silly song.
//Panel 8//
Charles:
…a song?
A song…!
//Panel 9//
Marybel:
…was a girl with translucent silver hair…

Take a look at Panels 7 to 9: This is a shojo manga's signature style of fluid panels, which give us dynamic, warped space and create a sense of time. Hagio uses this technique very effectively to paint a certain atmosphere. Panel 7 also has a roundness to it that evokes the sun, and a feeling of warmth and joy, which is emphasized by actual rays of sun radiating from the upper part of the panel...These rays (or perhaps it is a breeze?) create a pleasing flow through Panels 8 and 9, and those panels themselves are vertical, slanted, shaped like rays of sunlight to mirror the sunbeams of the previous panel. Then in Panel 10 this fluid, joyful movement suddenly stops--we still see vertical lines, but they're prison-like bars, with Charles trapped behind them.

Translucent Silver Hair (Page 3)

Now, let me start with the very first of the "Poe no Ichizoku" series - "すきとおった銀の髪 (Translucent Silver Hair)." This is the cover art.

This story feels like a pilot episode - it is still pretty much in the traditional mold of shojo manga, featuring a girl and a boy, surrounded by flower petals and veils blowing in the wind.

Here we are introduced to Marybel and Charles, and Edgar and the rest of her family remain in the background. The "Poe" series later takes a turn toward more boy-centered stories, but here we have Marybel as the heroine of the story.

A bit about names of the characters. Naturally, the names are given in Katakana in the original, so the translator has to come up with the English spelling. Most of the conventional names, such as Charles, are easy. Marybel, or メリーベル, is a made-up name. I chose "Marybel" because of its association with Edgar Allan Poe. Characters in the series have names like "Edgar", "Allan" and "Poe", so it is hard to miss this connection. One of the famous works of Poe is "Annabel Lee." So I settled on "Marybel". Another possibility is "Merrybel", because her birth mother's name is "メリーウェザー", or "Merryweather". I know, I know, it is a family name, but "Merry-" and "Mary-" is written the same way in Katakana, so to a Japanese audience those names sound related.

It comes with a short verse - "とばりの影には 永遠の美 永遠の命" which I translated as "In the shadow of the veil lies eternal beauty, eternal life." Actually "とばり" doesn't mean "veil" - it is a word usually used in a figurative way in a construction like "夜のとばり" and signifies the abstract action of hiding something. I just used "veil" because it's present in the cover art. There is a lot of poetry in "Poe" so that is going to be the source of some headaches.

By the way, page numbers are based on "Shogakkan Sosho - Poh no Ichizoku 1" published on July 1, 1988.