Every Fae has something niche they collect. Old records, forgotten books or even lost toys. Your collection? Well… you definitely don’t have to worry about someone wanting your things…
Everyone has heard the stories about how deals with the Fae often come with a price. To get something you must first give something in return. Most Fae tend to focus on specific objects or items that they take from others. These deals center around the power a belief or memory has in an individual. Someone's favorite toy could be associated with a childhood memory, and by taking the toy the individuals childhood could now feel hollow. Taking someone's favorite book or song from them is like ripping the blankets off of someone, no longer letting them hide away from the empty cold around them. Of course not every Fae is malicious in their intent when they collect these items. Some Fae would rather items centered around negative beliefs or memories. As while good memories and beliefs are integral to shaping an individual, so too are the bad experiences. What happens when you take the discomfort or even negative ideals themselves. Would someone who loses their self-destructive tendencies improve or would they feel so hollow inside. No matter what it's always a gamble on what a Fae decides to collect. Ages ago, my first deal was a simple trick. "May I have your name". The individual without thinking said "Yes". And when they or anyone else tried to say that name in regards to them, it was as if something stopped them. A classic Fae joke, one that normally leads to returning the name but taking something else of value from the individual. It's much easier to get someone to give you something when you have leverage over them. But when I went to check on them, rather than crying tears of sorrow I found... joy. "Why are you happy? I took your name" I raised a curious brow as I asked this only to be met with a small laugh and smile. "Because. That name never felt like it belonged to me. Sure I was given that name, but I never wanted ownership of it" They wiped a tear from their eye as they stared towards their mirror. "You can have that name, do what you want with it. I prefer to use a different name now anyways" Observing this human I came to find, the complexity of what makes someone who they are. And I watched them transition through life and grow into a new person. In taking their name I granted them not just peace of mind, but a new identity. I couldn't return the name if I wanted to, for that person never existed at all to them. A few years had passed, and somehow they found me again. Bringing me someone who they claimed was similar to them. They proposed a deal and I took their name as well. And once more I witnessed what I thought would be regret and sorrow turn into joy and hope. I thought nothing of it, and chalked it up to human oddity but somehow a similar situation happened again in the future.
It seems I had somehow garnered a rumor about me amongst the humans. That I would take someone's name and turn them into someone else. For some people they treated this like it was a horror and crime against the very existence of humanity, but occasionally you'd get those curious to know more. And somehow they would make their way to me.
I was more than happy to take someone's name, and often times they'd offer me other things as well. While I'd accept, nothing ever felt as good to me as taking someone's name. Because I made so many deals some Fae would often try to steal from me, but never understood the importance of what I collected.
A name isn't just a way to refer to someone. A name is only part of an identity. By giving me their name these people were able to replace a part of themselves that never felt like it fit. Every name is like a different piece of a puzzle, and what use is a singular piece of a puzzle to those who don't even know the whole picture.
