#primcon

Faerie Rings and Time Differences

Disclaimer: UPG.  My information comes from both personal experience as fae in both this, and previous lives, and talking to other fae (in Faerie) about it.

Disclaimer 2: DO NOT step into a faerie ring without reading this WHOLE ARTICLE and understanding the Consequences.  I disclaim all responsibility for your fate, desired or not.

The first thing to do is explain what a faerie ring is.  It is a kind of planar bridge that allows two realms, in this case Earth and Faerie, to share a space, without allowing energy to permeate one another.   This doesn’t mean all energy, but specifically mortal energy, and fae energy, the energies that are the fundamental part of the two realms.  On the Earth side it is usually demarcated by mushrooms, flowers, vines, or other natural objects.  On the Faerie side, it is demarcated by metals, plastic, and other unnatural objects.  This is one (of the many) reasons the fae might take off with one of your items, as well.  They are enchanted in such a way to redirect energy that would leave the ring back into the proper realm.

The field that the faerie ring covers is usually a perfect sphere, however if the ring is small it may just be a cylinder.  The spherical faerie ring is usually used when an event is to take place on Faerie and Earth both at once.   The cylinder is used when a portal between Faerie and Earth is required.  Faerie rings that project spherical shields are also usually large, and often fae can be seen inside them from the mortal realm.  The cylinder rings extend up about 8 feet on average, and the sphere fills the volume of the diameter, including underground.

In the times before, when fae and humans walked together in the same realms, faerie rings did not need to exist, and were rarely used, because magick was part of both worlds and it was not necessary to shield one from the other.  However later, when it was time to withdraw, any sign of an area with high fae energy could easily be detected as a place where fae still resided on Earth.  Additionally other factors (which may be described in another article) caused Earth’s natural magick to begin to fade, an effect that was highly undesirable to have spread to Faerie.  So with the fae, went the influence of the Faerie realm with it.

However some fae of course, stayed behind, attached to parts of Earth by choice, obligation or compulsion.  In order to allow contacts between realms, faerie rings are used.  They are also used to hold events or rituals to be done by mortals and fae alike, things that still do happen to this day, typically by those with a relationship with the fae.  Mortals of all types are typically “welcome” into a faerie ring, for better or worse for said mortal.   It should also be noted that the size of the circle can be larger on one side than the other.  That becomes immediately apparent when you walk into the ring.  Sometimes, a faerie ring is as large as a courtyard or even castle or forest, on the faerie side.

Do note that if the natural objects enforcing the barrier of the faerie ring are removed or otherwise destroyed, the fae will quickly take down the whole circle.  Take care should you choose to step inside.  Now, to discuss one of the more interesting parts, the time disparity between the mortal realm and Faerie.

The time difference can actually vary wildly depending on where in Faerie you are, but is generally one year to one day.  That is to say if you enter a faerie ring, every day you spend in it will be a year of time on Earth.   There is an aging issue, on your return, because even though you’re in Faerie, temporally, you are still on Earth.  You seem to disappear on Earth when this happens, but what has actually happened is you left the temporal frame of reference you were in when you entered the ring, and are now passing through time at (on average) 365.25 times the speed.   You are still aging as this occurs.

Now when you visit Faerie in a dream, because only your spirit is going, it is the exact opposite.  You are able to experience a third of a year of time on Faerie in only a night, and again it varies wildly, not only because of different time tempos in Faerie, but also because your spirit does not have to experience time linearly nor is it really bound to a certain temporal frame of reference.  This is the same for most other planes however.

When you consciously (as in being awake) project to Faerie, you will experience time at the same scale as mortal time.  As it would seem, the safest ways to experience Faerie is to dream your way there, or project your spirit there.

When you physically step into a faerie ring, you should understand that you are making a commitment to temporal acceleration.  To bring the time scale in perspective, on average every second spent in the ring will translate to about 6 minutes in Earth time.  If you plan on returning to your mortal body at any time, be absolutely short with your presence.  Remember that you cannot predict the time of body failure, and while body degradation will occur slower (because it is actually doing less over time at the accelerated time scale), the first thing your physical body is liable to die from in a faerie ring, is thirst.  So you can’t simply say your body will “age 10 years over 10 days” if you stay that long and assume you will emerge alive.

The easiest way to avoid this issue is to break the circle on the Faerie side of the ring.  If you do this, you will start absorbing fae essence just from being in Faerie.  This can be as simple as walking outside of it, to actually displacing or removing one of the objects enforcing it.  In fact the sanctity of the faerie ring on the Faerie side is to prevent people who enter it from becoming fae, just from being present there.  In general the fae will not prevent you from breaking the ring, because there really is no effect on them (the mortal realm does not start spilling into faerie because it is unbroken on Earth) and additionally, the fae rightly assume you know what you’re doing when you do this.

If you have spent more than a fortnight in the Faerie realm, do this, because on Earth, you’re probably already dead.

By now, you must have inferred the consequences to doing this.  If you break the faerie ring, you will no longer be fully human, more equivalent to a changeling, when you return, if you can return.  Once you have absorbed enough fae essence from Faerie that you are more fae than mortal, its over.  You can return to Earth and look at it from the faerie ring, but will be unable to leave it.   Have a nice wave goodbye.

One other pixie reminded me of something.   If you eat any food over in Faerie, even within the ring, the process of becoming fae yourself will be accelerated.  It doesn’t really matter how much.  Once the food is digested, you’ll be too fae to return, in fact once it passes your heart on its way to your stomach, it has already started changing you.  If you manage to get back to the mortal realm with Faerie food or drink in you, expect death not long afterward.  The good news however, is that your spirit will return to Faerie.

~ @alynnafoxie

So I caught wind of a discussion of “Fae facts” that were listed on the web, and what was true and what was not on it, and I’ve decided to write an article about it from the fae perspective…

‘Fae’ range from anything like goblins and imps to the little pixies with the wings that everyone associated with fairies to the seven-foot tall members of the royal courts. some even consider the banshee to be fae. (also trolls, gnomes, elves, djinn, dwarves, leprechauns, will-o-wisps, etc.)

Partially true.  There are actually many more fae than mortals can imagine.  There are fae unicorns (though not all unicorns are fae), merfolk are fae, there are some mortal species that can become partially fae (like changelings) and there are fae that no mortal has ever even heard of.  Additionally other cultures have fae under other names and courts, such as yokai, spirits (tho not all spirits are fae), and others.  Fae exist all over the world, in different cultures, with different names, and often their own Courts.

Some think the fae are evil, some think they are fallen angels, but most are considered to be a chaotic neutral force. some might call this ‘whimsically evil.’

False.   Angels/Demons and fae are not related.   We generally come from nature or Faerie, and the angels and demons are created directly by a divine being for a purpose.  Also our ‘alignments’ are all over the map, just like mortals.

Honey makes them drunk.

Mostly False.  Honey is the base for honey mead.   Honey mead is the base for Faerie wine.  Honey has more of an ‘effect on us’, but it doesn’t generally make us drunk.   We however do make the Best Wine fron it.  

Iron poisons them, as it does many magical beings.

True.  Almost all the fae I know have some reaction to iron.

Some were-creatures were probably just fae in disguise, since fae can assume any form.

Somewhat true.  Not all fae can shapeshift, but some were-creatures are fae.  Not all fae that can shapeshift can take any form, but some can.  I can’t take the form of a human (at least as fae), and the number of animals I can turn into… well that’s not unlimited either, but it is alot.   Also fae shapeshifters usually have a base form that they prefer.  Sometimes that is called their ‘sleeping form’ because some can’t maintain it when they sleep.

They sometimes lure humans with music that makes them want to follow and dance. They have to dance for what feels like a year and a day but it’s actually only seconds.

False.  This is the other way around, please see my article on faerie rings.  If you enter a faerie ring, and dance for a day, when you exit (on average) a year will have passed.   If you have danced with the fae in one of these rings for a year and a day, don’t return to Earth as you’re already dead there.

True names of the fae have power over them. they often use aliases when dealing with non-fae.

True.  

Some people are gifted with fae sight, which allows them to see the fae and also sometimes peeks into the future through their dreams.

Partially true.   Except that those people who have ‘fae sight’ are usually partially fae themselves.   Also it gives no insight into the future.  However they are easily able to travel to Faerie in their dreams.

Cats hate the fae, and the fae hate them back.

False.  Some fae ride cats around.   Some fae become cats, particularly when they want to become a witches’ familiar.  Pixies have the most trouble with cats, because cats think they are moths and chase them around. But in general, the cats just want to play, and are not hated by pixies for this.

Iron horseshoes over the door can act as a fae deterrent.

Partially true.  Also other things can deter fae, like salt.   Why would you want to do this?

They sometimes kidnap human children and leave their own children or elderly behind. these are called changelings.

True.  It still happens today.   Additionally some fae end up incarnated into mortal bodies, by choice, obligation or force.  These are also considered changelings.  In a society that denies fae exist for the most part, those changelings may not know about their true nature right away.  Changelings and faekin are functionally similar.

Fae are generous with gifts, especially for polite people, but prefer gifts in return.

True.  But should this be considered unusual?

That being said, better to avoid accepting gifts.  You probably don’t have enough to pay them back. By saying ‘thank you,’ you acknowledge that a gift was given and that you now owe something in return.  Being indebted to the fae = bad time.

Partially true.   Often mortals do not understand the value of what is given.  It will help, if you are going to ask a fae for something, to have the payment already in hand.   Then we will know how much of it you want in advance.

Fae can’t lie, but truth and honesty aren’t always the same.

Partially false.  Fae can lie, we usually won’t.  Not only are lies draining to maintain, but why would we bother?  I don’t lie.

Asking for a favor will cause offense. Make it seem like it’s their idea to help you.

Partially true.  Don’t just come to us to ask for favors all the time, what would you think about another mortal that did this?

Most things offend them, actually.

Mostly untrue, although the idea that mortals think everything offends us, is offensive…

Some fae can smell a lie. there’s no way of knowing which ones unless they tell you.

True.   Actually most of us can tell when we’re being lied to.  But again is this unusual?

Fae use ‘glamour’ to hide their appearance or habitations around humans. ‘Glamour’ can be gifted for use by humans.

True.   Also you all can learn glamour on your own if you put some effort into it.

It’s better for fae to have half-breed children than no children at all, so relationships with humans are fine. It just rarely works out fine for the human.

Partially true.  There are plenty of fae changelings in the mortal realm, even today.  But there is very little reason it can’t work out fine for mortals to have these children.  

Iron, salt, and bread (any kind) will ward fae away. so will rowan and hazel.

Partially true.  Iron, yes; Salt, conditionally yes; Bread, no; Rowan, yes;  Hazel, no.

Rowan and iron will ward most bad things away, actually.

And I guess good things too.   I don’t like where some of these facts are going.

Ringing church bells at dawn and dusk will drive fae and/or changelings from your village.

Mostly false.  Though most of us aren’t a big fan of churches.

Alternately, cream and butter and cakes (not bread!!) will attract them.

? … Well I like cream and butter and cakes.   There’s nothing wrong with bread.   What were people putting in their bread back in the old days?

They have many names. fair folk, the good people, the gentry, the wee folk. my favorite is the good neighbors.

True.  And even more names than that.   Humans have 1100 distinct languages and a word for us in most of them.

There are places where the veil between worlds is thinner, and these places see more fae. Ireland is said to be one. transient places (crossroads and bus stops etc.) are said to be another.

True.  Also see ‘liminal spaces’.

Musicians are often taken to their world. they may come back but they won’t be the same.

Partially true.  Sometimes mortals wander into our world, attracted to what we’re doing.  Sometimes musicians hear the music and come.   If you come to Faerie long enough, you’ll become fae.  It can’t be helped.   But there’s really no discrimination.

Adder stones (also called hag stones, witch stones, snake eggs, adderstanes) can reveal fairy or witch traps if seen through the hole in the stone. You can’t trick an adder stone.

Probably true.  Though this presumes the fae and witches set traps for humans in the first place…

The fae are highly sexed. Orgies are common.

Mostly true.  There are exceptions as always.  The fae tend to love first and ask questions later.  We can fall in love immediately with someone with a spirit that attracts us.   We don’t need your ‘spin-up’ time.

Random body pains were attributed to the fae. this was called elf shot.

Mostly false.  Random body pains can be attributed to any type of magick, energetic or psionic attack.  Check your shields.

Tangled hair in the morning was also considered their fault. this was called elf locks.

Usually false.  Though pixies playing in your hair at night is not unheard of.

Consumption (tuberculosis) was attributed to the fae as well, for forcing young men and women to dance all night.

False.  I think this goes without saying.

Basically if you were sick and there was no cure, blame the fae.

LOL.  Mortals blame everything on everything but themselves…

Alchemists sometimes called on certain fae to assist them. No word on how well this worked out for them.

True.  So do witches.  So do other types of magick practitioners.  Sometimes we even teach things.  It worked out well for most.  It depends on whether you want to learn our arts or just depend on us to do our arts for you.  Don’t be lazy.

Millers were thought to be ‘no canny,’ which means in league with the fae, owing to their ability to control elements. (fire in the kiln, water for the burn, wind for the mill, general control of machinery)

Mostly true.   Except any practitioner of any trade can have a relationship with the fae in their work.  The closer to nature you work, however, the more you can expect the fae to be involved.

If you know a fae’s true name, you can summon them at any time to do your bidding. But this is a double edged sword. If they learn your true name, they enslave you right back, and the things they do would be far worse than anything you could think of.

Partially true.   No right-minded fae is going to give you their true name.  If you find it out, however, and never abuse that power, no harm no foul.   If you begin to abuse it, though, then it’s only prudent to learn yours and get you to stop.  Most of the people who have formed the foundation of this ‘fact’ abused a fae’s name.

Some myths have lesser fae paying a tithe (a tiende) to their royals. Some myths have them paying this tithe directly to hell.

Partially true. Some Courts have taxes. I mean, castles don’t defend themselves and if courts don’t have reasonable resources to solve the Big Problems then the Court doesn’t really work.  This being said, we bear no association with the mortal concept of Heaven or Hell and we certainly do not send energy or mammon to their leadership.

Mortal midwives were sometimes summoned to the fae realm to assist in the birth of another kidnapped mortal woman.  They sometimes offer an ointment for use on the baby. if the midwife uses it herself, she will gain fae sight.

Partially true.  She will become partially fae.   Hopefully that’s what she was going for. If you’re going to do this, at least split it between you and the baby.   Why would you want to hurt the baby?

Lesser fae can die or be killed.  To witness one of these funerals is bad omen.

Partially true.  Its pretty hard to truly kill a ‘lesser fae’.  Even changelings spirits will return to Faerie.  It’s not impossible though.  If you’re witnessing one of these funerals, you’re probably already fae.  Take that as you will.

Credit and references are given to the following sites for being the source of this list:

https://faerielore.tumblr.com/post/162470095402/starbiter-some-fae-facts-from-lore-pt-2-pt-1

http://starbiter.tumblr.com/post/157281741328/some-fae-facts-from-lore-fae-range-from-anything

~ @alynnafoxie

Faction: Autumn Court

Species: Red Deer ‘taur

Person: “Hart” , Autumn Fae Wardmaster

Claims on Red Deer ‘Taur Gender Dynamics:

Cismales only have antlers. Showed confusion, bewilderment, and some disgust when I told him the local California Tule Elk ‘taur have their genders split into antlered and non-antlered, with non-cismale elk being able to wear antlers.

Had to explain me being trans to him and it was polite for him to respect/civil about it. Cissexism exists among nonhuman spirits, folks. (I’ve had so much confusion about being trans from spirits about it)

Climate Bafflement:

“Hart” and his wife, “Monarch” were confused by all the greenery and autumn not hitting my part of California yet. Most trees are still green. I had to remind them autumn isn’t in full swing until November. Welcome to California.

Wake Cycles:

“Hart” was not happy about his pixie construct children sleeping in on Sunday morning. He was all gruffly like “They need to be up at dawn.” As a college student, I shuddered in horror. I suspect that his people, both court and red deer, wake up at dawn and sleep at dusk. As a human whose wake cycle is not ruled by the sun, I find this baffling.

Faction: Fractal Ice Court, sub-faction/ally of Winter Court.

Species: Icefang Lamia

Person: Blizzard, low-ranked hunter/personal aide to me.

Claims/Stuff I’ve Seen

Physiology: Serpent people with tits, scales range from ice-white to deep oceanic blue. Ice-white skin and hair. Either in serpent form or a half-form with a boobed humanoid half with hair and a serpent tail. Stingers at end of tail. Adults will be around fifteen feet long. Live in hollowed out ice floes, filled with antifreeze in their blood. Everyone is born with having both penis and vagina.

Sexual/Social Dynamics:

Blizzard’s people live in small groups of either family or close friends. A strict pecking order is established by sparring for social rank. (Wrestling in serpent or half-serpent form) It’s seen that if you can’t last in sparring, how can you endure long hunts that last for days in the frozen waters? Lower ranked individuals are sexually submissive, but will kill and poison higher-ranked lamia who abuse them. They are honor-bound to serve, but in return, to uphold honor, higher-ranks must treat them right .

(I found out about icefang lamia fighting for social dominance since Blizzard ended up challenging some of my other serpent companions. Saw her wrestle and lash out against them, only to loose to a winged quartz serpent. It was fairly alarming and hilarious)

Most of Blizzard’s people are cis and totally okay with having both reproductive parts and tits. But some are trans/mono-gendered. Blizzard has a brother/sibling who removed his tits and had their egg-laying organs removed. I tried to refrain from human gender while writing about Blizzard’s people.

They are members of Fractal Ice Court, due to inhabiting Fractal Ice Territory, but most perfer to live out in the frozen waters. Those who partake in court life often serve as handmaidens to the nobility, assassins, courtesans, and shock troops.

Hunting:

Lone hunters/huntresses will swim for fish, small marine mammals, ambush migrating birds during the “warm” months. Outsiders and travelers are seduced and eaten with alluring song, hypnotizing dances, and mind-altering pheromones. Or just plain constriction and poisons. Or frozen. Hunting packs will dive for larger prey such as walruses and whales. Group tactics are needed to freeze such large prey with elemental magic and then deliver a killing blow with their venom. Said venom can be used to freeze an entity from the inside out. Whales trapped in these frozen magical ice floes will often be eaten from the inside out over the course of many months. Ice floats so they become floating food fortresses. Packs tunnel through flesh, eating choice bits. Only the leaders may eat the brains. Icefang lamia will consume the reproductive bits as a form of sympathetic magic, for fertility.

Submitted by @norcal-animist

Disclaimer: UPG. I am writing this as a fox phouka, and I will write about both myself and the other ones I have met.

Spelling: When I look around I have seen Phouka spelled 7 different ways on average. I have always preferred Phouka, and I haven’t tried to consult too many other phouka about it because many of us struggle to grasp the complexities of human language (I am a rather stark exception, but that is because I am here). Some of us remember the old spelling Puca, but it also requires accent marks that aren’t as common in languages anymore. However, Pooka is never acceptable. Please don’t spell it like that, it conveys a sense of cuteness that, the majority of the time, you will not experience encountering one. Additionally if you search for information about us under that term, you are very likely to be misdirected to information regarding our race in an RPG game, 90% of which will misinform you, and should rightfully be ignored. This being said, it is pronounced this way.

Species and forms: Many sources say Phouka are “horses, period”. Other say we come in a variety of species, and yet others, say we can be any species we want, and we can shapeshift into other species. The third statement is the correct one. We come in as many species as the world has, and then some. In most cases, Phouka take the form of some kind of animal, either in natural form or anthromorphic, but there are some rare exceptions of them having some humanoid attributes. Somewhat more common is a Phouka having the attributes of two different animals, such as a fox and a snake, or a horse and a fish. Phouka that take many different forms often take horse form because it affords them a great deal of speed and strength. Almost all Phouka, however, have a preferred form, usually a form they either relate to the most, or were born as.

How is Phouka formed: Phouka can come to be in 4 different ways I know of. One way is simply to have Phouka parents. Another is for a fae spirit to be born to an animal, or for a spirit to be taken from an animal and replaced with a fae one. It is also possible for an animal to wander into the Faerie realm the same way humans sometimes do. Once there, some circumstance, even long enough exposure, could give them fae nature, thus them becoming Phouka.

Regarding the rumors that everything we say is a lie: This is roleplaying lore claptrap. In fact many of us are actually truth-bound, and most of us will tell the truth sooner than lie. This is because lies are exhausting and unsustainable in the long term. I certainly do not want to keep track of what of what I have said to some mortal is true and what is false. This being said, this is not universal, you’re bound to find Phouka that lie eventually. Additionally, if a truth might be inconvenient, uncomfortable, or even harmful, you can expect to have some statements worded very carefully or facts omitted. That said, however, that occurs all the time even between mortals. You may believe yourself to have been tricked, but in general, if we haven’t spoken in truthful, even blunt terms, then there was a reason.

So one thing I have been asked, is how do predator and prey Phouka interact? In general, we do not eat other Phouka. However a fox Phouka like myself would think nothing of eating a rabbit, even if I have rabbit Phouka friends and even if they are present. Because in general, nature fae understand that we are all part of a cycle of life, the seasons are a cycle, the year is a cycle, even the ages are a cycle. We also understand that in order for one creature to eat, another must die, whether that is a grape or a rabbit. All life struggles to live because that is life’s basic drive. But spiritually there is typically no hate retained over death. I say typically because again, there are exceptions. Fear of death and fear of fate are typically mortal concerns.

What court are Phouka part of? Typically nature court. I will explain this one in another article, but I will summarize that Phouka are generally not beautiful and pure enough for the Seelie, nor strong enough for the Unseelie. Additionally, Phouka typically do not like to walk a path of either shining light or the total darkness. Almost all of us are either seasonally associated with either spring or autumn.

Some other notes I should add is that some Phouka decide to become familiars, typically to witches who are truly practicing the Art, because it is of benefit to both sides that interaction with nature, and with us, like we exist and can be spoken to like people, that it be encouraged. You won’t find this attitude amongst all fae, particularly Seelie and Unseelie, partially because they believe that taking care of nature is solely their function.

Our general disposition towards humans are … I don’t think many of us are happy with humanity and the direction it’s going right now. It’s pretty much like you’ve all fallen away from nature. However having become a human this time around (Sometimes I cannot fathom why I did this, and other time I think it was to understand you all), I have come to understand that humanity is a victim of its own circumstance, a drinker of its own wine, as it were. There is a belief that humanity is the pinnacle of life, the chosen species, and other such nonsense. Because of that, nature goes ignored. You are distant from your roots. You are distant from your walk with fae, to the point where we are not recognized as existing in your reality. Still many of us would still deal with the ones who want to talk, and want to listen. That is actually a refreshing beat, a glimmer that there is still hope for the lot of you .. Some of us will be angry, especially when we are found in a place that humans have trashed. And some will be friendly, especially in places that humans have restored and preserved. The ones that are angry will probably bite, and the ones that are not, might at least talk to you.

References for external material:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%BAca http://irelandmythsstoriespictures.blogspot.com/2009/11/puca-or-pooka-puka-phouka.html http://www.irelandseye.com/paddy3/preview2.htm https://ronelthemythmaker.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/the-phouka-folklorethursday/

~ @alynnafoxie