Outsiders
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The term 'Outsiders' was used by the residents of Minakami Village, the Kuze Shrine and Mount Hikami, to refer to strangers who visited from elsewhere.
Fatal Frame II / Deep Crimson Butterfly
In Minakami Village, visitors were for the most part treated with hostility and suspicion by the villagers,[1] who were forbidden to speak to outsiders about the village.(This may have included not only the rituals but recent village events, as in the case of Itsuki's imprisonment.)[2] Visitors were sometimes used as Kusabi sacrifices to calm the Hellish Abyss when it rumbled between Crimson Sacrifice Ceremonies.[3] Seijiro Makabe is one example. If the villagers intended to use the outsider as a Kusabi, they would give them an unusually warm welcome.[4]
Not all outsiders to the village were used as Kusabi (Ryozo Munakata and his father visited the village without incident, for example), but by the time of the Repentance, all Kusabi were outsiders.[5] This custom led to the village being feared as a place where people were spirited away.[6]
Known Outsiders
Possible Outsiders
- Ryozo's father
Fatal Frame III
In the third game, "outsiders" is used as a term given to the men that were invited every few years to the Kuze Shrine to reproduce with a female member of the Kuze Family. This was done in the hope of producing a female heir to continue the Kuze family bloodline.[7]
An outsider was invited to stay as a guest at the Kuze Shrine until the snows of winter melt. During his stay, the outsider was only allowed into certain rooms, probably to ensure there was no chance that the Tattooed Priestess could see and fall in love with him. During the day the outsider was confined to his room, and at night he was received by the female heiress of the Kuze Shrine,[8] who might have been visited by many outsiders in the past.[9]
At the end of winter, the outsider was ostensibly forced to leave the manor.[10] Supplementary material suggests that these men tended to disappear without trace after their visit, and that Akito's death was not an exception to the rule but a continuation of an "unpleasant, long-standing custom."[11]
Known Outsiders
- Akito Kashiwagi
- Amane's father
Possible Outsiders
- Kyouka's father
Fatal Frame V
In Fatal Frame V, men were sometimes invited to the House of Joining on Mount Hikami to become the grooms of shrine maidens who had been sacrificed. This was thought to strengthen the maidens and ensure that their Pillar would last longer. The men would come bearing a token from their chosen maiden, or would choose her picture from among the others in the house. During the ceremony, the maiden's spirit would briefly return to the ordinary world. If he did not flinch from the sight of her covered in black water, and if she did not reject him, the wedding would proceed. After their souls had been joined, the Outsider would be placed into the reliquary with his bride. If the wedding failed for any reason, the man would be forced into a reliquary alone, his bones broken, and placed in the pile of boxes in the Forbidden Valley.
The only outsider to escape the mountain alive was Kunihiko Asou. He was invited to the House of Joining to take a photograph of one of the brides with his Camera Obscura, and although he fell in love with her, they never exchanged vows, and he was allowed to depart unharmed.
After the disaster that ruined the mountain, the solitary brides continued to wait in their reliquaries. The photograph taken by Kunihiko Asou eventually resurfaced, and men who saw it were captivated by the bride's beauty, just as he had been. Many such men were summoned to participate in the ceremony, but none of the unions were successful.
Miku Hinasaki also came to the House of Joining in the role of an Outsider. The fact that her intended groom was serving as a pillar far away from Mount Hikami did not appear to interfere with the procedure, and she was permitted to wed him and enter a reliquary of her own.
Note: Many laypeople came to the mountain seeking death, but they tend to be referred to as "pilgrims" rather than "outsiders".
Known Outsiders
Misc. Info
- In the Japanese version of Fatal Frame II and Fatal Frame V, Outsiders are known as "marebito" (客人) - literally meaning "visitor". It is also a term used in Japanese folklore.
- The Japanese term used in Fatal Frame III, "niinae", can mean "new seedling/sapling", which may refer to how the men were used to produce children.
References
- ↑ Tamashizume: Introduction, Zero Akai Chou Complete Official Capture Book p2-3 (English translation)
- ↑ Butterfly Diary 1, Fatal Frame II
- ↑ Ritual Tome, Fatal Frame II
- ↑ Bound Diary 3, Fatal Frame II
- ↑ Glossary: Hidden Ceremony, Zero Akai Chou Master Guide p154-158 (English translation)
- ↑ Mio's Memo: Hidden Ceremony, Fatal Frame II
- ↑ Folklore Notes 1, Fatal Frame III
- ↑ Folklore Notes 2, Fatal Frame III
- ↑ Purple Diary 1, Fatal Frame III
- ↑ Folklore Notes 3, Fatal Frame III
- ↑ Yuu's Notes 4, Zero Shisei no Koe Complete Official Capture Book