#faespirits

[spiritroots]

Arcane Profile: Faetouched

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Posted with full consent from @witches-with-weapons .

Energy Types & Elemental Alignments:

Fire energy

Amber energy

Forest energy

Nature energy

Daytime/solar alignment

Potential Magical Strengths:

Fire magic and divination

Herbalism and nature-based magic

Prosperity and manifestation magic

Joy and happiness spells

Working with fae and nature spirits

Protective magic and wards

Crystal, rock, and stone magic

Charging (energy work)

Daytime and solar magic

Overall Recommendations:

You’re faetouched, which means that you’ve been given a gift of some fae energy that will remain with you the rest of your life and give you a slightly stronger connection to pure magic energy and to nature energy. Fae will also be more willing to work with you even though you’re human. It’s not at all like being fae incarnate, but it’s certainly a step closer to that. I can’t be certain how much of your energy signature was changed by this since I hadn’t read it before this happened to you, but now I can tell that you certainly have many characteristics of your energy that are complementary to or similar to fae energies. 

Two things that all fae have in common are their connection to nature and their connection to magic. Nature and magic are at the very essence of all the faefolk, and this is also true for you to a smaller extent because now you have more of a relationship with nature that goes a bit beyond what most human beings can cultivate on their own. If you ever have an opportunity to perform spells or rituals in the middle of a forest, I would highly recommend for you. Talking to and meditating with the spirits of forest trees (as opposed to trees in other places) would be another great exercise for you. It’s still important to learn to be respectful and friendly towards fae, plant, tree, and other kinds of nature spirits, but generally it should be much easier for you to approach and work with them. 

You will also find great advantages when working with herbs or other natural ingredients in spells. So herbalism and folk magic could be great potential paths for you. As you may already know, folk magic is an approach that generally taps into forging deep connections with nature and intuitive improvisation with ingredients and techniques. While there are at least as many types of folk magic as there are cultures in the world, these are common aspects to all such traditions. I suggest looking into European forms of folk magic such as German and Irish as they not only would relate to your specific ancestry, but also to working with the faefolk.

This is a concise excerpt of the full reading. Whole Arcane Profile readings have much more detail and content. See more information here.

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[spiritfaq]

Warning to all spirit workers and spirit companions…

It’s true that we all have our own UPG and different experiences. Two spirit workers can meet two completely different spirits both belonging to the same species and wind up with completely different impressions of that species from their encounters. Or two people can observe the same spirit and perceive that spirit’s form or energy a bit differently. Sometimes conflicting UPGs can still both be correct! However, when you see something dangerously off or misleading in the spirit working community, especially when it is endangering the rights of spirits, we believe it’s important to call that out.

Any spirit adoption center or shop that says they have an “exclusive” deal with an entire spirit species is very, very likely lying. And on top of that, it is absolutely objectifying to those spirits to say that you somehow have “exclusive” rights to their entire species. Most spirits are individuals with free will and deserve to be treated as such. Many members of a particular spirit species don’t necessarily even know each other never mind would all be willing to make an agreement about being spirit companions for people through only ONE spirit worker. Though beginners to spirit work may not see how absurd or off such a statement is, let me assure you that this is a very unrealistic and outlandish statement to make about any spirit species.

However, this particularly stands out to me when in reference to the fae. Most fae spirits consider themselves superior to humankind and don’t have a lot of interest in them unless there’s a particular reason for it. Fae species also tend to be very broader, meaning that there are many many members of any given fae species not just a few. So the odds that an entire fae species would ever agree to give one spirit worker the “rights” to conjure them as spirit companions for people is slim to none. As a fae incarnate myself and an experienced fae worker, I feel the need to call out that this is extremely likely to be incorrect information for the gain and reputation of a particular shop or adoption center.

Please double check the facts, learn from your own experience, and remember that sometimes UPG can vary from spirit worker to spirit worker, but sometimes there are limits to what is “real” versus what is for the gain of someone’s reputation online. 

Spirits deserve to be treated as sentient beings with rights, they have their own lives, and I highly recommend only working with spirit shops or adoption centers that treat them and refer to them as such!

- Mod Fire

[spiritionary]

Important PSA About Fae!

Mods Wind and Fire have made some observations about fae that explain a lot of the common misconceptions many spirit workers seem to have about faefolk in general. The most common depiction of fae in fantasy series, movies, and storybooks are similar to Thumbelina, Tinker Bell, the fairies of Fern Gully, and the stereotype of the beautiful or cute tiny “fairy princess” with wings who is kind and friendly towards humans. This leads many spirit workers and aspiring fae workers to believe that all fae spirits are going to match this description - and more unfortunately that all fae will be more or less human-friendly. 

However, It is common knowledge among most experienced fae workers and fae incarnates that most fae spirits not only consider themselves superior to humans, they have little to no interest in humans whatsoever unless they have an extremely good reason to pay attention to any of them. On top of that, depending on the fae spirit, they may consider human life disposal and not particularly valuable unless they have a particular interest in a human because they consider them exceptional, talented, or desirable in some way. So if this is the case, why is it so common for some people to encounter or hear about “nice” faeries who seem pretty human-friendly and do look similar to the fantasy story stereotype? Mods Wind and Fire think this is likely due to the prevalence of pixies and sprites.

Fae Species and Prevalence

“Fae” is not a single species, but more like a genus that encompasses a very wide variety of many, many distinct fae species. The category “fae” is so broad that there are even many sub-classes of species. There are even fae-like spirits across the globe in almost every culture who identify as being of the same general type of spirits as “fae” - we call these non-European fae-like spirits sidi, and this shows how diverse and broad this category of spirits can be. All fae/sidi spirits are a type of nature spirit, but some are more closely tied to and related to nature than others. Fae/sidi species who are less naturalistic tend to be more likely to be involved in court life and involved in court politics. Fae species more tied to and connected to nature tend to prefer to live in nature as completely solitary or part of a looser clan structure. Any fae can choose to be solitary or court-affiliated depending on their political circumstances, but certain species stereotypically tend to be associated with being solitary or certain courts. 

Court-affiliated fae usually look down on solitary fae and more naturalistic fae because they are essentially seen as having little to no political standing (with the exception of the few very politically involved solitary fae) and in some cases as being “wild” or “uncivilized.” I want to emphasize that all fae are a type of nature spirit and tied to nature, but they relate to nature differently and court-affiliated fae have a tendency to look at more naturalistic fae as beneath them.

The “Nice” Faeries: Pixies & Sprites

On the scale between more naturalistic and less naturalistic, sprites and pixies are classes of fae species that lean very far to the naturalistic side. Some have a more simplistic intellect and most tend to behave in more “immature” or “child-like” playful manner, which is why unlike most fae species who are keen to show their sophisticated and wise nature as immortal and “superior” beings. They are all very closely tied to particular elements within nature and actually strongly radiate the energy of that element. Sometimes you can see this in an aura or energy ball of color around them.

So far between Mods Wind, Fire, and Water we know of the following types of pixies: dark pixies (radiating darkness and shadows), dusk pixies (sunset colors, associated with dusk time of day), new moon pixies (associated with the new moon phase), various plant-type pixies, “seasonal” pixies (the fae embodiment of certain seasons which seem to be responsible for bringing on each season), and insect pixies (very closely tied to nature). All these “pixies” are tall enough to stand on the palm of a human hand and have wings. Hence, they look very similar to the stereotypical Tinker Bell, Thumbelina, or Fern Gully type of faery. Sprites are very similar but regular-sized and with lightly less mischievous/child-like traits and somewhat more intelligence than pixies. They look a bit like the Children of the Forest from Game of Thrones but with wings just like pixies. Sprites are also closely tied to nature and particular elements. So far, Mods Wind and Fire have encountered general “nature” sprites (radiating earthy nature energy), water sprites (radiating water energy), guardian plant species sprites (radiating earth and plant energy, generally watch and guard over their specific plant species in an area) and light sprites (shining, yellowish, radiating light energy). Almost all fae species have some kind of elemental association since all fae are a type of nature spirits, but while most fae are of an element, sprites and pixies are more like an actual personification of that element. For example, nagas and children of the sea are both water-associated sidi/fae species, but water sprites actually radiate water energy.

Many pixies and sprites like to live in nature close to the element they are associated with, but that doesn’t mean that the majority of them are solitary either. Some are quite fine with being involved with the courts, and many of them are court-affiliated (perhaps because they aren’t all so great at defending themselves in the wild and court-affiliation comes with a degree of protection). They are usually treated like the “peons” of the courts and have low-ranking positions ranging such as scouts, messengers, servants, etc. Most sprites and pixies don’t seem too bothered by these placements in fae society and appreciate the few perks they do get from court life. In fact, many fae species refer to sprites and pixies as “lesser fae,” and this is not considered a horrible or slanderous term to use. Remember, fae culture is very different from human culture and fae treat not just humans but each other very differently than what humans would find acceptable or polite.

The Myth of the “Nice, Safe” Faeries

Nevertheless, whether court-affiliated or solitary, there is a much larger abundance of sprites and pixies living in nature on earth than most other fae species. The more powerful and more politically involved a fae spirit is, the more likely it is that they will spend most of their time living in a fae realm and not on earth. The fae realms are like the original “homeland” and earth a highly populated but less significant place in fae society. Since many sprites and pixies serve roles like messengers or scouts for the courts, they have more reason to be sent to earth. There are also just more pixies and sprites whether court-affiliated or not living on earth because they don’t mind immigrating away from the homeland of the fae realms as other fae species might. 

Being “lesser fae,” both sprites and pixies tend to be less of the haughty and superior-to-humans mindset that other fae species usually have. This higher tolerance for humans and increased potential interest in humans combined with their “cute” appearance and child-like or playful mannerisms lead to misconceptions that these characteristics are representative of ALL fae.

Sprites and pixies can still be dangerous like all fae, but they tend to be more prevalent on earth, more friendly to humans, and look more stereotypically like some movie depictions of fae. MOST OTHER FAE SPECIES are less prevalent on earth (more populous in fae realms), much less friendly towards humans, and do not necessarily fit any movie depictions of fae at all. 

Conclusions for Spirit and Fae Workers

It is extremely important to understand this difference when talking about faefolk and attempting to work with them. Confusing pixies and sprites for other types of fae/sidi species is not only inaccurate, but it’s also quite dangerous for you as a spirit worker. Make sure you are cautious with all fae/sidi species (and in general with any new spirit you encounter). Take your time identifying spirits and if you think they might be fae, even if they are a sprite or pixie it’s better to be safe than sorry. If you are new to fae work and would like a tutorial on where to start, check out Mod Fire’s tutorials for introductory fae work for beginner spirit workers and medium/advanced spirit workers.

- Mod Wind & Mod Fire

—> Have questions? Send them to us at SpiritFAQ!

[spiritionary]

Unseelie Fae

Introduction to the Unseelie

Definition: The terms Seelie and Unseelie aren’t actually species of fae, they are fae courts. So “Unseelie fae” are fae spirits who are a part of any smaller court that falls under the Unseelie Court at large, or is loyal to the Unseelie Court in general. There are many smaller courts local to different areas and principalities, and those individual courts may be aligned with the much larger Unseelie Court or not. Members of the Winter and Autumn courts tend to be Unseelie aligned as well, but they are separate courts so it depends on the political climate of the time.

Species: Since this article discusses Unseelie fae and the Unseelie Court, that means it covers a very wide variety of different fae species. Certain species of fae are commonly known as Unseelie because they have an extremely high likelihood of being aligned with the Unseelie Court, but every individual fae’s court alignment is actually independent of their species in theory. In practice, since family lineages and court alignments are essential to fae culture, certain fae species tend to be so closely associated with Seelie or Unseelie because family lines usually stay loyal to the same court for many generations. 

Here’s a short list of some fae species that are typically Unseelie aligned:

Alp Lauchra

Bean Nighe or Bean Sídhe

Cat Sídhe

Cu Sídhe

Dullahan

Fachen

Fuath

Gean Cánach

Glaistig

Leanan Sídhe

Sluagh Sídhe

Personality: The word “Unseelie” is typically translated to mean “unblessed” or “damned”. If anyone has ever seen the TV show Supergirl, then you’ll understand what I mean by saying that the Unseelie remind me a little of the Daxamites - they are generally hedonists who enjoy entertainment, indulgence, and delicious food. Unseelie fae cuisine includes magical plants native to their regions in the fae realms and sometimes even human spirits. Unseelie fae enjoy music and dance as much as any fae, but entertainment for them also may include tricking or torturing others (particularly those they see as lesser than them like humans and other mortal species). However, the Unseelie are willing to be accepting of outsiders when those non-fae can prove themselves extraordinarily skilled, powerful, and strong in ways that they respect.

Morality: If there was an Unseelie motto, it would be “we do what we want to.” While the Seelie sense of pride and honor relies more on a set of cultural rules, the Unseelie respect power and might. Many behaviors considered rude or cruel by others are in fact respectable and natural to an Unseelie fae. For example, not taking advantage of someone or dominating them when one has the power to do so is actually considered weak and dishonorable by Unseelie standards. This is why they do not consider it inappropriate or rude to treat humans disrespectfully or cruelly by human standards, and also why they do not necessarily need any provocation at all to initiate such behavior.

The Unseelie Court

Origins: I’ve read this from multiple sources and had it verified by the Unseelie fae I know that originally, in the beginning, there was only one large fae court, which then split when the Unseelie wanted to do things differently from the Seelie and no longer be bound by their philosophies and laws.

Political Power: Though the Unseelie Court may seem unorganized or unstructured compared to the Seelie Court, there is always a hierarchical power structure - it is just very fluid at times. Essentially, the survival of the fittest is the rule of the court. Theoretically, any Unseelie fae can challenge the king and queen of the court to a royal duel for the throne. In practice, only fae belonging to noble Unseelie family lines would ever make such a challenge - and only if they are willing to bet their otherwise immortal lives on it. Unseelie duels are always to the death to ensure that the winner is truly the strongest and most powerful of the two. In this way, Unseelie culture has a distinct vicious warrior-element to it. Noble families tend to have many advantages in fighting each other, which makes commoners and outsiders unlikely to win duels against those considered superior to them. 

Generally, the longer a king and queen reign the Unseelie Court, the more noble fae they have had to kill to maintain their positions over time. The same that is true of the throne is also true for all the lower positions on the political hierarchy - all court titles are earned by might through duels and maintained by dealing with any challenges that may appear. Thus title appointments are essentially non-existent in the Unseelie Court. Shifts in who occupies which titles and positions occur at what may seem like random intervals since it all depends on the strength of those current leaders and the willingness of any challengers to come before them. Hence the appearance of disorganization or fluidity at times.

Hierarchy: At the top of the court is the king and queen, who work together but each have their own responsibilities and must both defend and maintain their titles. There are other positions within the upper Unseelie Court, which typically live in a castle. While noble Unseelie fae vie for power and fight amongst each other to control the upper levels of the whole court, there are lower positions that relate to specific regions within the fae realms and places on Earth as well. These localities may choose to be Unseelie aligned or not, and thus the upper levels of the Unseelie court must work to maintain loyalty - very occasionally threatening war if absolutely necessary.

Other Information

The Host: Common Unseelie fae who do not belong to a noble family line may do any number of things with their time and have a large variety of functions in fae society or the natural world at large - usually this is highly dependent on their species. Some common Unseelie fae choose to join the Sluagh Sídhe of “The Host” or “The Slought,” which is known as “the band of the unsanctified dead who fly above the earth, stealing mortals and take great pleasure in harming humans” (x). They are brutal, chaotic, and enjoy harming and not infrequently kidnapping humans. I recommend staying away from Unseelie fae when they are traveling as a part of the Host at all costs. They are known to particularly active on Samhain/Halloween and mostly associated with the Autumn Court.

Human Interaction: While Unseelie fae are often characterized as bad or evil, it really depends on your perspective and how you choose to interact with them. I recommend that most humans generally stay away from the Unseelie and don’t choose to get involved. Most (but not all) Unseelie fae will only stop seeing you as just another pitiful mortal and weak human if you are able to display and demonstrate some real strength of magical prowess and character - which is difficult to do even in comparison to ordinary common fae and their innate powers.

If you encounter one by accident and just want to avert trouble, as irksome as it is to do so it is usually safe to tell them what they want to hear (apologies, I’m such a weak human and you are so power, etc., please just let me live I’ll leave now) and you try to can back away and leave safely. If you see the Host, genuinely just run as fast as possible. If you have permanent Unseelie residents - do not try to just banish them from their own territory. The offerings that are generally accepted by other fae will usually be accepted by Unseelie fae as well (cream, milk, honey, glittery objects).

- Mod Fire

Sources of Information: Mostly UPG via interactions with Unseelie fae nobles and many articles on fae in general (compared to or verified by Unseelie fae I’ve met) in addition to my own observations and speculation.

---> Have questions? Send them to us at SpiritFAQ!

Art Credit [x]

[spiritionary]

Q&A With A Fae

One of my fae contacts was willing to let me interview him and share some information (under certain conditions that I’m adhering to). I asked around the spirit worker communities I’m in for questions to ask during the interview, and what follows is a summary of what he told me in response to those questions. These are not exact quotes, but my interpretations of his answers and added information for context! A lot of the questions and answers are about fae in general, but it is useful to note that he is a noble member of the Unseelie Court.

How do you get in touch with fae?

If you start doing anything related to magic in your area and it becomes noticeable enough or if you start interacting with the natural environment around you, usually the local fae will have some kind of awareness of you - of a greater or lesser degree depending on how relevant and noticeable you make yourself based on your behavior. So if you are doing extremely big spells, lots of intense spirit work, or landscaping - you’re definitely going to be on local fae radar. They’ll know about you, but may or may not interact.

For whatever reason, if you really want to get their attention, asking for it is enough - although they may or may not be interested in responding. By asking for it, I mean leaving offerings, doing a ritual to contact them, etc. If they do respond, make sure you know what you’re getting involved with!

Why they so rude?

Yes, I actually asked this question... and basically, most of the behaviors humans interpret as being “rude,” the fae doing them doesn’t consider them rude. It’s a classic case of cultural differences. Fae have their own ideas of what is rude or not, and this may or may not overlap with the human ideas about it. If you do choose to interact with fae or must deal with them for whatever reason, try to think from their cultural logic. Seelie and Unseelie aligned fae each have their own sets of rules about what is normal and appropriate. 

I haven’t worked with Seelie fae enough to know, but Unseelie fae tend to regard humans and other mortals as extremely inferior to them. Fae are immortal unless killed, so they live much longer than humans and have more time to learn and develop their knowledge-base, skills, and intellect. Fae are also inherently much more magically talented than most humans. So to an Unseelie fae (and to all fae to an extent), treating a human as inferior and as rather worthless is natural and expected. Basically, they are “rude” because its their nature and culture to be that way toward humans. Think of it how humans treat animals - we tend to see ourselves as intellectually superior and able to do much more and live longer, so as a species we don’t usually treat animals in the same way as other humans even if we grow fond of one as a pet. Humans are viewed in a similar kind of way to fae.

What is the basic etiquette humans should have with humans and common faux pas humans make with fae?

Almost every text you’ll ever see about interacting with the fae will advise you to be polite to them. This is paramount for your own safety. Whether you are dealing with Seelie, Unseelie, solitary, or some other kind of fae it’s in your best interest to be as courteous, kind, and polite as possible. The average fae is inherently more magically powerful than the average human, and they do not value human life in the same sort of way that humans don’t value the lives of animals the same way they do another human (see previous question). If your wording and attitude when approaching them has undertones of subservience to them and a huge amount of respect, they’re much more likely to be willing to work with you. 

However, if they get impatient with you, you get disrespectful, or even worse you don’t hold up your end of a bargain or return a gift or favor then you’ll quickly get into hot water. Unless you’re willing to stake a lot that you have the magical and spiritual power to face off with a fae, it’s not really a good idea to try to banish them if things get sticky. Always apologize even if you don’t want to or don’t feel like you should have to and offer to rectify the situation. That’s really the best you can do if things go south! It’s very difficult to outsmart them, as many fae have lived for a ridiculous amount of time longer than you and are masters at trickery and deception.

What are good offerings and gifts to give fae?

If you are in contact with the fae who you want to give offerings to, you can always ask them as it may depend on their particular species and personality. Generally speaking, however, fae tend to like sweet things, pretty things, and valuable magical items. So the usual suggestions of cream, milk, honey, and shiny or glittery things are all safe bets (so long as you aren’t leaving anything outside that’s littering or leaving trash in nature). If you leave an offering out, make sure it’s biodegradable! Also, you could gift an enchanted or magical item of value if you’re willing to give it up. 

Just because you don’t hear from local fae if you give an offering doesn’t mean they didn’t receive it or like it, it just means that for whatever reason they decided not to respond by communicating with you. However, it is very difficult for fae not to reciprocate so you will likely receive something in turn from them without even realizing it.

Why do some fae get annoyed or seem jealous when you take on a protective approach to nature? Why do some fae seem to challenge me when I get involved with nature?

Think about it this way. There are nature spirits - i.e. tree spirits, animal spirits, wind spirits, etc. - of natural phenomena in the world, and the fae are a completely different set of spirits that often live amongst those nature spirits and protect them since they are a part of the same habit environment and interconnected with each other. So if you start interacting with nature spirits or spending time in nature, then you’re also under the fae domain whether you like it or not. 

So looking after and protecting nature is generally appreciated by fae, but it all depends on how you go about it. The fae see themselves as in charge, so if you come in and start acting like you’re in charge, they won’t all take too kindly to that. Like if an animal comes into your backyard and starts pulling out the weeds or chewing on your flowers, you’re going to want to make that animal get out of your backyard. That’s why many gardeners leave offerings for the fae asking them to look after their garden - from the fae’s perspective they really should be asking for their blessing to be gardening at all.

Whenever you’re in nature or working with nature, remember to acknowledge that the local fae consider themselves in charge and look for signs of whether they are happy or not with what you are doing in their territory. If you see it as your territory and overstep your bounds in their eyes, you may receive an unwanted challenge or not so pleasant messages that you are unwelcome. Unfortunately, I think this is fairly unavoidable.

How accurate are the myths regarding changelings?

The changeling phenomenon is real, but it’s not something that happens at random. First of all, the change is not that the human baby’s body is replaced, instead when this happens the human soul is taken away to the fae realm and a fae soul is left in its place. Sometimes human incarnate fae are changelings.

In general, fae will do this souls swap for one of two reasons. The first reason is that humans have asked a lot of fae without returning the proper favors or offerings or have done something really awful that offends the fae, in which case the changeling happens because it is about fufilling what the fae sees as an owed debt. I’m not sure what Seelie fae do with these human souls, but Unseelie fae sometimes eat them or make them slaves in the fae realms. 

The other reason a changeling situation may happen is that a human is born with extraodrinary magical or intellectual gifts that the fae want. In this case, the human soul made be made a court servant. Some Unseelie fae (particularly nobility) will eat these human souls as a delicacy to obtain their magical gifts and knowledge.

Have any outsiders been stealing resources from the Unseelie Court territory? 

Not in any significant ways to the knowledge of the fae I spoke with, but he said that perhaps local common fae would know better of small issues regarding this or not. I didn’t find out any specific information for this question.

If you have more questions you’d like me to ask, my contact may not be willing to share but I’m more than happy to try and ask him! Just let me know in the comments or in your reblog. I hope this information is helpful! Remember that all this is UPG based on my interview with this one particular fae in addition to my own experiences/knowledge of the fae.

~ Mod Fire

---> Have questions? Send them to us at SpiritFAQ!

[spiritionary]

Autumn Court Fae/Pixie Constructs

Submitted by Mod Water

Meeting: Encountered while walking to the bus. The pixie constructs, referred to here as pixies as shorthand, were draining the chlorophyll from tree spirits to make physical leaf color change easier for the physical tree.

The trio of pixies are not fond of their parents, calling them “mean and strict.” In an act of teenage rebellion, they swore an oath of fealty to my spirit household’s head. (In order to leave their court from what I can tell)

Physiology: Can fit in my hand. Small humanoid figures, pale skin with wings similar to monarch butterflies and dead brown maple leaves. Clothes are made out of dried flower petals, dead leaves, and seedpods.

Psychology: Childish, impulsive, emotional.  Quick flighty things, bratty.  Can be reasoned with.  Questions authority and loves to taunt bigger things then them. Lover of sugars, attached to their parents, did not realize leaving would require living away from their parents.

Manifestations: Feel like beating wings against my aura, quick nyooooms, fast little beating hearts, easy to see with my third eye/mental flashes, feels like autumn.

Gear: Head of household has equipped them with an armory of pointed needles and enough poisons to lay down a small army.

Magic: Draining chlorophyll from tree spirits, capable of building fetches/fakes/doubles of entities, basic warding. The trio wish to learn more about construct making and carry one their mother’s craft.

Parents: Mother/maker is an elven maiden of ljosalfars that left their ancestral realm to join the Autumn Court. She has reddish-brown hair and clothes made out of dead leaves and a monarch butterfly wing shawl. She wears a butterfly mask. She goes by “Monarch” to me. Occupation is construct maker.

Her husband/their adoptive father, Hart, is an deertaur of the red deer species. He is a wardmaster/head of security of his forest district. He is big with a large proud set of antlers with a monarch butterfly shawl wrapped around his waist/over his flanks. Buff bara deertaur.

(California deertaur are a lot smaller and slimmer, physical red deer are one of the largest deer species.)  He has several other wives of varying species.

Social: The pixie trio’s parents are equivalent to lower middle-class. They are not part of the seelie/unseelie courts, avoiding politics to uphold their duties of keeping nature running.

Fae constructs like this pixie trio are often not considered real fae by court nobles particularly among the unseelie. But they have enough fae energy to be mistaken as such.

According to Hart, constructs that his wife makes are hired/sold/adopted out to other fae as servants and laborers. They are indentured servants for several years, until they can earn their freedom/citizenship of the lowest level.  

They are not disposable, and they are often strict with their creations in order to ensure they can survive the strict etiquette of fae society. With many different species and cultures in fae society, knowing the rules is often needed to survive.

Hart considers this pixie trio too young to consent to joining my household but since he and his wife are allowed to drop by and check in on them, they cannot do much about it. Especially such open hospitality means any show of violence is dishonorable. (Hart and Monarch are allowed to hang around me and parlay in the front yard and to have open access to my room, provided they are supervised.)

Monarch and Vati (head of the household) have exchanged techniques on construct making, especially since Vati has produced his son through similar techniques.

History:

The trio were born out of a magical process that is fairly grisly. The Wild Hunt and other fae often collects the souls of humans, children included. Sometimes these kids are eaten. The remains are given to lowly construct workers like Monarch. They take the human scraps, twist it with elemental/nature energies and brew it with the boiled remains of an executed greater sprite. (Think pixie but much larger and more powerful) Spells and enchantments and various ingredients are used to make specific constructs of differing elements.,

The stew is then used to fertilize the eggs of pixie constructs and then they hatch. (Naturalborn pixies have fertile eggs).

Insect pixie constructs are produced out of a mash of insects, elemental energies, and greater sprite.

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[spiritionary]

Sidi Spirits: Proposal for a Universal “Fae” Term

Mod Fire here! As a spirit worker with a focus on the fae and nature spirits - as well as being a daolna (human with a fae soul) - I find I frequently run into a serious challenge with talking about the fae. I would like to propose a new solution for spirit workers and invite discussion on this topic!

European Origins of the Term “Fae”

In the human world on Earth, we have different cultures, different languages, and different religious and spiritual paths tied to these languages and cultures. Discussions about spirits are situated in these global cultural and linguistic contexts. This is true for physical animals and creatures as well, but unlike talking about biological flora and fauna it is more difficult or perhaps even completely impossible to separate the cultural and linguistic subjectivity of spirits from the existence and classification of them. 

Calling any non-European spirit “fae” becomes problematic since the word “fae” originates from European folklore. There is an argument to be made that using European terms such as “fae” to describe spirits from other cultures, especially indigenous cultures or cultures that are marginalized in Europe and the West in general, has troubling colonialist undertones. I see this as a very valid argument and important point.

Fae Around the World?

However, folklorists, anthropologists, and others who study the myths, legends, and spirits of cultures around the globe have adopted the term “fairy-like” or “fae-like” to describe spirits who seem to fall into this category. For instance, Wikipedia has an entire page devoted to “beings referred to as fairies” which include a wide variety of non-European spirits. I have included links to articles about different spirits which bear significant resemblance to fae spirits, and many of these articles actually refer to them as “fae-like” or as “fairies” including Alux, Duende, Shoshone Little People, Patupaiareha, Peri, Ponaturi, and Yaksha.

Being fae myself and having worked with so many fae spirits, I have seen the term “fae” transcend across cultures and beyond spirit species not just in academia but also in my own spirit work. I do not think this is because the use of the word “fae” is actually universal to these spirits that I call “fae”. The spirits themselves have their own way of communicating, their own languages. The word fae originated in Europe and was created by humans, but the “fae” themselves understand they are much beyond human words and labels. 

It is difficult walking the line between respecting the cultures and unity of this class of spirits we often refer to as the “fae” and respecting the human cultures and spiritual systems that describe them.

Sidi: A New Universal Word

Just as we have the word “deity,” a universal and non-culturally specific way of referring to gods and goddesses, why not create such a word to describe the class of fae-like beings who identify as belonging to that same grouping of spirits? The main issue with the word “fae” and related words such as “fairy,” “fairy,” and “faerie” is that they come from human European cultures and languages. To possibly resolve this cross-cultural issue, I propose new, neutral words…

SIDI: Spirits who seem fae-like, identify as “fae,” or identify as belonging to the same group as “fae” and do not mind being called sidi/sidi spirit.

SIDIA: A neutral replacement for the words “Faerie” or the “fae realms,” meaning the place where sidi spirits may originate and where many live.

I invented the words “sidi” (pronounced si-dee) and “Sidia.” Aside from “sidi” incidentally meaning “master” or “lord” in some dialects of Arabic, the term has never come from any folklore or pre-existing cultural context for spirits. The word “sidi” does indeed resemble “sidhe” (mounds in Gaelic), but also to “siddhi” (magical powers or attainments in Sanskrit). No one culture can put a claim on this word, and it could be used to refer to “fae-like” spirits without any appropriation or European-references.

The term sidi is not meant to be used to force spirits to identify in a way that they don’t want to, it is only to be used either in place of “fae” to avoid appropriation when spirits are fine with the term sidi being used. The term sidi is also not necessarily meant to represent what these spirits call themselves, but to use a non-culturally specific set of terminology to describe this class of spirits which they themselves claim to all belong to. 

Examples of spirits across non-European cultures who may potentially fit into this category of Sidi:

Alux (Mayan), Duende (Iberian, South American, Chamorro, Filipino), Jogah (NA - Iroquois), Kowi Anukasha (NA - Choctaw), Little People (NA - Shoshone), Nirumbee (NA - Crow), Patupaiarehe (Maori), Peri (Persian), Ponaturi (Maori), Rock, Laurel, and Dogwood People (NA -Cherokee), Xana (Asturia), Yaksha (Hinduism/Buddhism/Jainism), Yokai (Japan).

- Mod Fire

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[spiritfaq]

Defense Against the Wild Hunt

@spontaneouslyobsessed asked:

Question: suppose you encounter part of the Unseelie Host and you can't run or you're hella slow. Are they susceptible to iron as well? Or rather would they be more likely to leave you alone if you have iron on you?

MOD FIRE: That’s a great question! I’m not sure if all, but absolutely most fae species will feel very uncomfortable around iron and won’t want to touch it. So if you’ve seen the Host passing by your area frequently or are especially worried about encountering them, wearing iron is a great precaution.

Another suggestion is if they do start attacking you and it’s too late, try your best not to let them see you in discomfort and feeling upset. Put on a brave poker face as much as you can. They enjoy mortal suffering and it’s a big part of why they even hunt humans and others they consider “lesser,” so if you don’t give them a good show they may get bored of you quickly and move on. Also, if very desperate, playing dead and trying to show no fear would be good tactics too!

P.S. your question was asked on @spiritionary but we only ask questions here on @spiritfaq !