2 Dealings with the Fair Folk
If elves are true, and really exist independently of our tales about them, then this also is certainly true: elves are not primarily concerned with us, nor we with them. Our fates are sundered, and our paths seldom meet.
JRR Tolkien, “On Fairy-Stories”
The Fairness of the Fair Folk
It is widely known that the Fair Folk do not lie. It might be more accurately said that they cannot lie, much as a river cannot flow uphill. They are an expression and embodiment of the natural world; so every word a fairy speaks is, or must be, or will be, true, by very virtue of the fact that they have spoken it. The world reflects their desire and and thought, called amongst the Fair Folk will and word; and they in turn reflect it back, a maze of infinite mirrors.
As any child who has grown up near a fairy-road or a moonlit glade or a standing-stone knows, however, this does not mean that the denizens of Fairy can be trusted.
Saying and Meaning
“You should say what you mean,” the March Hare went on. “I do,” Alice hastily replied; “at least — at least I mean what I say —that’s the same thing, you know.” “Not the same thing a bit!” said the Hatter. “Why, you might just as well say that ‘I see what I eat’ is the same thing as ‘I eat what I see’!”
Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Amongst the canny and wise, dealings with the Fair Folk are conducted circumspectly and with a great deal of due dread. Every phrase and meaning must be closely scrutinised. The Fair Folk never say anything they are not willing to mean, and by their nature they expect the same of mortals, however foolhardy or ignorant of fairy rules they may be. Only the suicidal or insane would dare to lie outright to the Fair Folk, or to speak carelessly with them.
The best rule is this: always mean what you say, but never say what you mean.
To give an example, upon meeting one of the Fair Folk, it is advisable give a title or nick-name rather than one’s true name, as true-selves take many forms and presenting the self most appropriate for the occasion is no more than courtesy; but it is a disgrace to claim a title or name that one has no right to. Again, it is understandable to fail to fulfil a promise, as mortals are known to be weak and unreliable; but it is a grave insult to make the promise never intending to fulfill it at all.
By Will and Word
The phrase by will and word occurs often in formal negotiations and agreements between mortals and the Fair Folk. It is a promise, an oath, and a declaration in one, which none of the Good People speak lightly. The will is intention and desire, and the strength of mind and heart to see it through. The word is the promise made and agreed, the shape that the world does or will take. So, by will and word means simply, “I shall do what I say.”
For the Fair Folk, this is already so self-evident in what they are, in the very fact of having spoken at all, as to be tautologous. If a mortal seeks assurance from one of the Fair Folk that they will do what they have said, by will and word it shall be done is the strongest of sureties — although to insist in this way is to tread close to offense, even for a fairy of sanguine temperament. For those blessed or blighted to deal with the greatest among the Fair Folk, disastrous consequences may befall the impudent mortal who casts such aspersions on their strength and grace as to need such an assurance.
For mortals, who by their own nature lie easily, often, and with little consequence to each other, allowances need to be made. The words of mortal folk are as wild as the wind, and with as much substance. When striking an accord, by will and word signals one’s willingness to be bound, even as the Fair Folk are, to the fulfillment of one’s word. Woe betide the wretched creature who speaks these solemn words without the wherewithal or will to keep them!
Loopholes
Agreements
The agreements made with, or in the style of, the Fair Folk typically fall into two broad categories, distinguished by their directionality.
Promises
Promises are one-way, with one side making the promise and the other holding it. Promises may often be offered as payment or recompense for offense given, or services rendered. For example, a sojourner might make a promise to pick every yellow flower they see for a year and a day, in order to mollify an offended fairy who hates the sight of yellow. If the terms are fulfilled, the promise is complete, and there is no further obligation on either side.
Lesser promises are the everyday currency of Fairy. The Fair Folk exchange promises as easily as mortals exchange coins, and often for similar purposes, as well as a matter of courtesy, apology, or regard. The Fair Folk also have no trouble remembering the multitude of lesser promises they make, as, having made or received a promise, it simply becomes a part of who they are. Mortals, however, would be well advised to keep careful track of the promises they make, and to take especial care not to allow themselves to be entrapped by promising an impossible contradiction.
Greater promises are the stuff of legend and lore, which reshape the world itself: crafting unsurpassable works of art, conquering monsters or nations, or performing nigh-impossible heroics of might and renown. Only the most powerful of the Fair Folk command the power and consequence to hold a greater promise, and more rarely still a mortal.
Random Promises
Pacts
Pacts are two-way agreements that require something of both sides. In some cases, a pact may only cover particular tasks, and in this case can be thought of as two reciprocal promises. For example, a knight may make a pact to slay a chimera that is desecrating an archfey’s hallowed glade, and in return the archfey will bestow their favour on her at the next tournament. A true pact, however, is an ongoing mutual commitment, often of power, favour, or aid in return for loyalty and service. Pacts often convey boons as long as the pact is kept, although not necessarily; they nearly always convey banes should it be broken.
Lesser Pacts
Lesser pacts are, like lesser promises, common between the Fair Folk, although somewhat more serious. They may be made as an expression of friendship or respect, or even of mutual enmity.
To forge a lesser pact, agree on terms on both sides. Keeping or breaking the pact should convey only lesser boons or banes.
Greater Pacts
Greater pacts define the lives of those who make them. They are most commonly made between liege-lord and vassal, and comprise the labyrinthine hierarchy of alliances and antipathies among the Fair Folk. For a mortal, even the offer of a greater pact is a high honour that nearly always comes with a high price. Ageless as many of the Fair Folk are, many an unwary mortal has failed to remember to include a proviso for release from their pact, and find to their dismay that after a lifetime of dangerous service, their fairy patron expects no less of them in their old age than they did in their youth, and may be unwilling to part with them except under the agreed-upon terms.
To forge a greater pact, elaborate on the terms on both sides: tasks to accomplish, strictures to follow, powers granted, favours rendered, loyalty required, indulgences forbidden (or obligatory). The longer, more detailed, and more convoluted, the better. Any greater pact may convey greater or lesser boons, but it will always convey greater banes should it be broken, and frequently lesser banes should any of the (myriad, interlocking) terms be not strictly followed.
Enchantments
Enchantments are called many things by many people: charms, curses, powers, magic. The term broadly refers to any effect or capability beyond the usual purview for mortal folk, but for the Fair Folk, they are an expression of what and who they are, as natural as breathing or running or laughing. For the lesser amongst the Fair Folk, these enchantments may be simple and small: keeping milk cold and fresh for days even in the height of summer, boosting the yield of a field of wheat for a season, making a heavy sword light as air for a brief time. For the greater amongst them, however, these extensions of their power and self, granted only by great sacrifice and solemnity, can affect the turn of the seasons, the flow of time, the shape of the world itself, bounded only by the will and word of the parties involved.
Simplistically, mortal folk divide enchantments into boons or banes. Generally, boons are helpful, and banes are harmful; but of course, that depends entirely on who or what is being helped or harmed! When making or understanding enchantments in the world, sojourners can conceive of boons as helpful to themselves, or to the party to whom a boon is granted, and the reverse with banes. Whether a boon or a bane remain as such throughout the course of an agreement may change, however, and may be grounds for renegotiation - at a price.
There are no set lists of boons or banes to choose from in this book. That’s because anything you can conceive of, including blessings beyond your wildest dreams and the most horrifying world-shattering curses, is potentially available as an enchantment…provided you can find a member of the Fair Folk who can grant that power, and who is willing to offer their word to you, and you are similarly able and willing to make and hold up your side the agreement. Conversely, even the smallest minor magics can only be obtained by agreement with a fairy willing to grant them; and you may find that the simpler and more humble boons and banes may be difficult to obtain at a price you are willing to pay, as many of the lesser Fair Folk are disproportionately tricksy, shy, or proud of their small powers.
Rather than looking through lists of possibilities, ask: what does your sojourner want? What power do they seek to gain, and for what purpose? Try not to think in terms of dice and mechanics – you can negotiate those terms when you come the agreement – but instead in terms of will and word. How do you want to be able to affect the world? And what are you willing to give up, or do, to have that power?
As an extremely rough guide, if you have familiarity with the dragon game, lesser enchantments may be approximately on the level of cantrips to level two spells, or minor class powers. Anything beyond that, or a core class power, is likely to be a greater enchantment.