Fairies, fair folk, fae, Fae: every culture around the world has a name for these human-like beings that live in their own realm and interact with us, sometimes sweetly and beautifully, sometimes more nefariously, sometimes just for fun. In North America, the beings known to the Europeans as “Fae” from their own associations with “Fair Folk” are properly referred to as the Miroven (meer-oh-venn).
Miroven is the proper and appropriate and formal name for these beings, but they may be informally known as Fae. Miroven include subspecies, such as pixies, humfaeries, gnomes, hobs, trinka, goblins, mannegishi, nunnehi, aseids, dryads, and more.
The Miroven are magical people who live their own a realm, a parallel world known as Bèlmounae (bell-mohn-ay). This world can intersect with our world in multiple ways, including energetically (such as ley lines and vortices) and physically (portals and borders). All Miroven are magical, with a raw level of power that can be used to do limited things with no training or practice. To do more than the basic magic, or to do things efficiently, Miroven must have education and training, not that different from mages and Wizards. Because fae magic comes from a different world or plane, this magic is not the same as the magic wielded by the Magimundi (or other magic-users on Earth). Fae magic is energetically different, and unique in terms of raw power. When a Fae leaves Bèlmounae and crosses into the Magimundi, their magic is not as powerful in our realm as it is in theirs, and it may behave differently, often unpredictably. The same happens if a mage or Wizard is invited to the Fae Realm. Mages can learn Miroven Magic, but it is difficult to master, and is harmful to the mage’s body and wand. This means that movement between the realms is fairly unusual and can be dangerous.
Fae who come into the Magimundi are revered and feared both for their rarity, their power, and this magical unpredictability. A Fae casting magic could be awesome or awesomely destructive.
Bèlmounae has two main sections, each with their own ruling system:
- Waakki: a.ka. Summerlands or Serenity or Concord;
- Waasani: a.k.a. Winterlands or Strife or Discord
These two lands are separated by the Chonje, the river of remembrance. There is an area outside of either Waakki or Waasani. It is known as Wakun, or the outside. Fae from here are Outsiders or Outliers, and belong to neither Court.