Glossary
N ote: The Faerie creatures in this book are based on traditional folklore. Wikipedia has articles about each type of fay if you’d like to learn more. I’ve noted which terms are my own invention.
Blood magic – spells which are strengthened by shedding blood. My invention.
Brownie – a type of fay who perform chores for a particular household in return for a bowl of cream or other offerings. From British folklore.
Collegium of Mages – a society of mages that imposes rules on magic usage, run by the Council of Mages. My invention.
Dryad – a type of fay, dryads are tree spirits. Classical and German folklore.
Elemental magic – a type of instinctive magic that affects the elements, i.e. water, air, earth, and fire. My invention.
Eliarinn – a type of magical fay kinship similar to marriage that is established between two unrelated people. Titania and Oberon are an example of eliarinn . My invention.
Fay, Fayfolk – any of the many types of creatures who live in Faerie, including elves, dryads, brownies, redcaps, Sidhe, sprites, pixies, dwarves, phoukas and more. Traditional.
Lesser fay – all the fay apart from the Sidhe. Traditional.
Mage – a mortal magician, generally a member of the Collegium of Mages. My usage.
Phouka – a type of fay, phoukas are shapeshifters who can take the shape of a cat, fox, raven, horse, wolf, or human. They are usually dark. From Celtic folklore.
Redcap – a type of fay, redcaps are very small, have sharp teeth, and can be malevolent. From Border folklore
Shurinn – a type of magical fay kinship between two people who share a blood relative but are not otherwise related. Eversleigh and Elizabeth are shurinn because they have a half-brother in common. My invention.
Sidhe – the highest-ranking fay group that rules Faerie, they are ethereally beautiful and once rode through the mortal world seeking poets and other artists. From Irish and Scottish folklore.
Sorcerer – a mortal magician who practices dark magic, casting spells on people, rather than things. My usage.
Tiarinn – a type of magical fay kinship between close blood relatives. My invention.
Widdershins – in a left-handed direction, i.e. counterclockwise. Old Scottish word.
Wild magic – magic performed instinctively rather than by traditional spells. My invention.
Note on fay genetics: Since Faerie doesn’t follow the same natural laws as the mortal world, I went to some trouble to establish breeding rules for fay that are completely impossible by our standards.