Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: tired
  • Music: Emilie Autumn, "Dead is the New Alive."

9 things about Faerie.

Well, we're now nine days out from the release of A Local Habitation, and so our countdown continues, with...

9 Things About Faerie.

9. All the various races in Faerie trace their origins back to Oberon, Maeve, and Titania in some way, even the monsters.

8. Descendants of Titania tend to be skilled at the classes of magic called "flower magic." Descendants of Maeve tend to be skilled at the classes of magic called "water magic." When Oberon gets involved, things get weird.

7. The prohibition against saying "thank you" originated with the Firstborn, many of whom are so tied to Faerie that they really are bound by gratitude. Their descendants are less bound by their given word, but cling to the restriction anyway.

6. Humans with too little fae blood to be considered changelings can sometimes develop magical powers anyway. These individuals are called "merlins," and can be substantially more powerful than quarter-blood changelings. They don't have instinctive magical knowledge, but they also lack most fae weaknesses.

5. Faerie as a world is very protean, and creates a new country for each new race, allowing them to live in the conditions they prefer, without needing to constantly war with their neighbors. A lot of the tensions in the current fae society stem from the fact that they can't get away from each other when they want to.

4. Not all fae have surnames. Those that do generally take them to reflect descent from a noble line. When two fae of noble lines marry, they will each keep their own name, and the children will take the surname of the parent with the higher title.

3. Fae started immigrating to North America years before the Europeans did, but the big population rush came when the settlers started moving en masse, as that allowed them to bring their changeling children and mortal servants without forcing them to travel via magical means.

2. The four sacred woods of Faerie are oak, ash, rowan, and thorn.

1. All fae races are claimed by one of the original Three. Much like the surnames issue, a race can only be claimed by one parent. The Cait Sidhe are a major exception. As they had three Firstborn (Malvic, Erda, Jibvel), each descended from a different of the Three, they are technically claimed by all, and by none.
Tags: a local habitation, making lists, toby daye
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  • 28 comments

la_marquise_de_

February 22 2010, 12:19:24 UTC 7 years ago

3. Fae started immigrating to North America years before the Europeans did, but the big population rush came when the settlers started moving en masse, as that allowed them to bring their changeling children and mortal servants without forcing them to travel via magical means.

Why, though? One of my niggles is the idea that our European cool stuff emigrated: I can see expansion, but why do the high powers go to? I suspect you have a well-thought out reason.

seanan_mcguire

February 22 2010, 13:28:02 UTC 7 years ago

It sort of depends on what you mean by "the high powers." The emigration really started about five hundred years ago when the Three vanished, cutting off access to the actual lands of Faerie at the same time (leaving only the Summerlands). Fae are very territorial, and they started moving about because it was better than the alternative, which would have been killing each other off.

Also, it was a great way for noble second sons and the like to actually have something to do. "Yeah, your brother's gonna be King. Go conquer Canada or something."

la_marquise_de_

February 22 2010, 15:50:10 UTC 7 years ago

That makes sense and, indeed, is the sort of considered reasoning I expected you had. There are certain books out there where anyone who is Really Important in faerie has of course relocated to the US (usually without any explanation at all, or because Europe is 'too polluted', which, when the elves are in LA, tends to make anyone who knows Ireland to laugh hollowly). I find this latter version quite insulting. Your version, however, is logical and sane and thoughtful.

seanan_mcguire

February 22 2010, 16:11:00 UTC 7 years ago

...and to them I say: ARRGH. There are still lots of fae in Europe, and quite happily. I'd love to have an excuse to introduce Toby to the fae in England, who are much calmer, in some ways, than the ones in the Bay Area. All the monarchs in North America are pretty johnny-come-lately, with the longest-held throne being less than two hundred years old. Some of the monarchs in Germany have been holding the same throne for over a thousand years. They think the North American fae are endearingly young and idiotic.

Now, there is some accretion that goes on; one person goes to a place, someone else follows, etc. But that changes all the time. Right now, there's a lot stacked up in San Francisco, for a lot of very specific reasons. Which I can hopefully get to before book eight...

la_marquise_de_

February 22 2010, 19:15:04 UTC 7 years ago

Book 9 maybe? I'd love to see Toby in Europe.