[FAN FIC] Remnant 01 -- Kanna Village

Notes: Part A of this chapter is from Okara's point of view. Part B is from Kirara's point of view. Neither are in first person. After much convincing (*coughs*intense hostage negotiation*coughs*) with Lily-ko and White Sorcerer who told me to add chapters 01, 02 and 03, I am. Chapters 04 and 05 is "in progress".

I have a circular thinking process. My writing style reflects this. What a mess. I'm very sorry! You do not need to read these new chapters, or maybe you should. Up to you, my sweet readers. ^_^

Beta: Lily-ko and White Sorcerer. All mistakes are my own.
Rating: Tulip - Sensitive subjects are brought up.
Pairing/Warnings/Disclaimers/Etc...: Please see the prologue's head and footnotes.
-----------------------------------------------
01 - part A: Kanna Village
-----------------------
( The morning was cold )

-----------------------
02 - Dead Men Walking
-----------------------------------------------
Ex. Notes:
---- There does not seem to be any 'earth'-like creatures on this planet. The chicken and pigs I described are very likely unusual.
---- In rural Japan, women walk behind men. Depending on the region, it could be 2 to 3 steps behind. Exchanges between peasants and samurai, women and men, are also very, very strict. There are protocols to this sort of thing. As much as I'd like to include them I'm lazy, therefore, I won't. Sorry.
---- "Witch" is as good a translation as priestess. I prefer it because no matter what Kirara says she can use magic no matter how "simple" it looks.
---- name-Kyou = (noble) Lord/Lady/Madam/Sir.
---- In Japan personal names are quite protected. People with titles are known by that title, not their personal names. In other words, the Emperor in Samurai 7 is known as just that; Emperor. His name will never be mentioned until, very likely, several decades after his death. Similarly Aishikawa would NEVER be referred to as such. He'd be known as Lord of Such and Such but after writing that way for awhile I found myself confused. This is why I am being so 'familiar' by using Lord Aishikawa. It is a highly inappropriate thing to do.
---- Both Okara and Kirara thinks of Heihachi, Rikichi or Kyuuzo as just that. But when they speak their name, they add -dono to verbally show they have great respect for the samurai. However, Kirara thinks of Kanbei as Kanbei-sama, and only as Kanbei-sama. It would be unthinkable for her to call him simply Kanbei or even think of him as Kanbei. Okara does not. Kanbei was a great man to her, but still, only a man. To her Kanbei is Kanbei or Kanbei-san if he'd recently been in her mind.

This was how I was taught to show great respect in Japanese. I'm not exactly sure why I do it either. Second nature thing. But no where does Kirara actually says she does this in the anime/manga. In other words, I'm using my knowledge of Japanese customs/languages/cultural stuff as how I was taught to show minute differences in speech and mannerisms. How I was taught is not the same as someone else from Japan was taught. So please do not use my writing as an example of how to do Japanese things. Thanks for understanding.
-----------------------------------------------
Prologue | 02
-----------------------------------------------

[FAN FIC] Remnant 02 -- Dead Men Walking

Notes: This is from Kirara's point of view but not in first person.
Beta: Lily-ko and White Sorcerer. All mistakes are my own.
Rating: Tulip - Sensitive subjects are brought up.
Pairing/Warnings/Disclaimers/Etc...: Please see the prologue's head and footnotes.
-----------------------------------------------
02: Dead Men Walking
-----------------------
( The forest was dark and slick with the unrelenting rain. )

-----------------------
03 - Family,
-----------------------------------------------
Ex. Notes:
---- Ronin - Master-less samurai (pronounced samarai). Historically not a cool thing to be in any era.
---- Katana - Japanese swords. Wakizashi, tanto, daito...
---- Chibi-ko. Rather redundant. Chibi -- little, very little, miniature, has come to mean the weird super-deformed, little caricatures many manga-ka (Japanese comic artists/writers) draws to illustrate a comedic or startling point in a plot. Ko -- child or kid. Could mean immature of physiologically/physically and/or emotionally/mentally.
---- No honorifics such as -sama, -san, -dono after the person's name is considered very, very rude. No honorifics after the person's first name is almost a declaration of war...unless they are very close friends as in the case between Kanbei and Shichiroji. But being a proper subordinate (caste, age and military structure) Shichiroji would never dare say Kanbei's name without an honorific attached.

Whereas Kyuuzo never addresses anyone. Sucsicent and to the point, he says whatever he needs to say then leaves or goes silent. Ugh! Very hard to write him.
---- Samurai were originally cavalry. Horse mounted soldiers. In Japan this equates to archery. One of the reasons why the traditional katana is also curved. It's so that a mounted man can draw it easily. (I differentiate betwen Kyudo and archery by the way. The former has nothing to do with hitting the target; Kyuuzo, on the other hand, was quite clearly teaching the villagers how to kill.) Bow and arrows are the samurai weapons, not katanas. Being a samurai meant one had to know how to use the bow and arrow hence why all the samurai knows how to do this in the anime...of course, that doesn't mean they had to be any good with it. The best were legendary in their day the same way snipers and sharpshooters are today.
---- Samurai is not like the Knights of Europe. They would rather kill their own children than betray their Lords, and quite a few have done so in shows of loyalty. Not extreme in the slightest, actually. This is an entire culture's absolute belief not just the samurai's view. If the samurai do not follow their Lord, the other samurai (from other clans or even appointed by the Emperor himself.) would rise up and kill them...even if the Lord is not a good man. That is samurai. Not the upholder of justice or cool, honor-driven swordsman image seen in pop culture today.

Samurai itself means "to serve". Bluntly put, the only purpose in a samurai's life is to die for their leaders, whom ever that will end up being. (Idealistically this person should be the Emperor but since ideals rarely survive the first bloody, gut-spilling engagement with reality...) Most hope to die in the prime of their abilities in spectacular, if not bloody glory. 'Bad' or 'good', the moral character of their leaders is not for a samurai to judge. Really, Heihachi...
-----------------------------------------------
Prologue | 03
-----------------------------------------------

[FAN FIC] Remnant 03 -- Family

Notes: This is from Okara's point of view but not in first person.
Beta: Lily-ko and White Sorcerer. All mistakes are my own.
Rating: Tulip - Sensitive subjects are brought up.
Pairing/Warnings/Disclaimers/Etc...: Please see the prologue's head and footnotes.
-----------------------------------------------
03: Family
-----------------------
( So they are..? )

-----------------------
04 - TO BE CONTINUED...Secrets
-----------------------------------------------
Ex. Notes:
---- "Water's consciousness" is something I made up. I also made up Komachi's psychic abilities such as predicting the future and sniffing out poison. But there are hints in the last couple of episodes in the anime of what Komachi could become if Kirara steps down from her post...
-----------------------------------------------
Prologue | 04
-----------------------------------------------