Hanafuda and kitsune
POSTED AT 04:32 AM in General
Last night I read this manga by Okama called Hanafuda. It's actually a pretty interesting love story with several plot twists in it, despite its genre.
After you separate out the plot twists, it basically goes like this, assuming my understanding of the Japanese text is correct.
Izuna and Kirihime were lovers. One day, the Kirihime notices a cute fox, and asks the fox to transform, who first transforms into her, and then into the person she really loved (not Izuna) after she asks again. The fox eventually falls in love with her, and is jealous so he starts transforming into the likeness of Izuna. One day, he notices the real Izuna cheating on her, so he kills Izuna, and from then on, the fox masqueraded as Izuna, and I *think* the girl knew this, but was fine with it. Time passes, and one day, just before they were to marry, Izuna hears that the girl has been taken away, he rushes off, and all he finds is her dead body. Well, in actuality, she was sold off to a brothel, and the body was of another woman who looked like her. Fox-Izuna then vows vengeance and beings to hunt down the supposed demons who killed her. More time passes, and the beginning of the story actually begins.
Fox-Izuna notices a kitsune one day eating his food, and he asks her to transform into the likeness of Kirihime, and she does so. She also notices that he had a different scent, and I think she knew at that time that he was really a fox as well. They live together for a while, and one day, a passing farmer notices Fox-Kirihime and mistakes her for a Kirihime look-alike working at the brothel. Fox-Izuna intervenes and tells the guy to show him the brothel whre this Kirihime look-alike is located. They find out that the look-alike was actually the real Kirihime and they rescue her.
Fox-Kirihime runs away, thinking that now the real Kirihime's back there's no need for a fake Kirihime. She's captured by the demons. Meanwhile, Fox-Izuna learns from Kirihime that she had gone off with the guy that day, the guy went off, and when he returned, it was with two demons. Under the demon's influence, she is raped (earlier in the story you learn that the demons are using him to impregnate women so they can eat the babies). After this, he carries her off and dumps her somewhere, and she is found and sold to the brothel, and another woman killed and dumped to make it seem like she was killed.
After this, Izuna then notices that Fox-Kirihime's disappeared, so he begins searching for her. Kirihime tags along, in order to rescue her lover. After a few days he notices her scent as well as the demons. They finds the demons and he manages to kill one by surprise. During the battle, Fox-Kirihime helps gets wounded, and Kirihime breaks the spell that her lover was under, and that pretty much ends her part in the story.
Fox-Izune nurses Fox-Kirihime back to health. However, after a day, she leaves again, and was never to be seen again. Fade to black.
Epilogue. After that, a man could be seen in the field with some mochi offerings (the food that she originally stole from him). He sees a fox, and calls out, but the fox runs away. He decides that it must have been some other fox.
Another scene of a field. And a fox can be seen. As well as her children.
Anyway, it was good enough that it made me want to read up more on the folklore surrounding kitsune beyond what I already knew. Although kitsune just means "fox" in Japanese, in terms of these stories, they're supernatural creatures, and are sometimes called "fox spirits" or "demon fox" and they often have the ability to transform, along with other powers.
Wikipedia of course, was an obvious source. And the first two links in the external links section are particularly good. Especially the second one, but both them have some PDF files of an old out-of-print book that can only be bought for hundreds of dollars (up to $1500) now. In other words, restricted library material, and not for normal people. Which I guess makes it fair use.
Currently feeling sleepy
After you separate out the plot twists, it basically goes like this, assuming my understanding of the Japanese text is correct.
Izuna and Kirihime were lovers. One day, the Kirihime notices a cute fox, and asks the fox to transform, who first transforms into her, and then into the person she really loved (not Izuna) after she asks again. The fox eventually falls in love with her, and is jealous so he starts transforming into the likeness of Izuna. One day, he notices the real Izuna cheating on her, so he kills Izuna, and from then on, the fox masqueraded as Izuna, and I *think* the girl knew this, but was fine with it. Time passes, and one day, just before they were to marry, Izuna hears that the girl has been taken away, he rushes off, and all he finds is her dead body. Well, in actuality, she was sold off to a brothel, and the body was of another woman who looked like her. Fox-Izuna then vows vengeance and beings to hunt down the supposed demons who killed her. More time passes, and the beginning of the story actually begins.
Fox-Izuna notices a kitsune one day eating his food, and he asks her to transform into the likeness of Kirihime, and she does so. She also notices that he had a different scent, and I think she knew at that time that he was really a fox as well. They live together for a while, and one day, a passing farmer notices Fox-Kirihime and mistakes her for a Kirihime look-alike working at the brothel. Fox-Izuna intervenes and tells the guy to show him the brothel whre this Kirihime look-alike is located. They find out that the look-alike was actually the real Kirihime and they rescue her.
Fox-Kirihime runs away, thinking that now the real Kirihime's back there's no need for a fake Kirihime. She's captured by the demons. Meanwhile, Fox-Izuna learns from Kirihime that she had gone off with the guy that day, the guy went off, and when he returned, it was with two demons. Under the demon's influence, she is raped (earlier in the story you learn that the demons are using him to impregnate women so they can eat the babies). After this, he carries her off and dumps her somewhere, and she is found and sold to the brothel, and another woman killed and dumped to make it seem like she was killed.
After this, Izuna then notices that Fox-Kirihime's disappeared, so he begins searching for her. Kirihime tags along, in order to rescue her lover. After a few days he notices her scent as well as the demons. They finds the demons and he manages to kill one by surprise. During the battle, Fox-Kirihime helps gets wounded, and Kirihime breaks the spell that her lover was under, and that pretty much ends her part in the story.
Fox-Izune nurses Fox-Kirihime back to health. However, after a day, she leaves again, and was never to be seen again. Fade to black.
Epilogue. After that, a man could be seen in the field with some mochi offerings (the food that she originally stole from him). He sees a fox, and calls out, but the fox runs away. He decides that it must have been some other fox.
Another scene of a field. And a fox can be seen. As well as her children.
Anyway, it was good enough that it made me want to read up more on the folklore surrounding kitsune beyond what I already knew. Although kitsune just means "fox" in Japanese, in terms of these stories, they're supernatural creatures, and are sometimes called "fox spirits" or "demon fox" and they often have the ability to transform, along with other powers.
Wikipedia of course, was an obvious source. And the first two links in the external links section are particularly good. Especially the second one, but both them have some PDF files of an old out-of-print book that can only be bought for hundreds of dollars (up to $1500) now. In other words, restricted library material, and not for normal people. Which I guess makes it fair use.
Currently feeling sleepy
1 Wais!
keishiko (guest)