Changelings
"The Dead Girl Epilogue" by Ana Cruz
It's midnight, and nothing stirs in the household. Every child is tucked away in his or her comfortable bed, sleeping soundly in the room. Safety is at hand because you know you've locked the doors, closed the windows, and the crib is right beside you, the random creaking indicating that your little one is moving from side to side. Sometimes she lets out a little sigh of restlessness. And sometimes she cries, and you get up to hush her back to bed.
The next morning, you say hello to the little one, greeting her with a cheerful, refreshing smile. But you begin to lose the smile because there, right there, you discover that the waking infant is no longer your child. You look around, panic-stricken, thinking who on earth managed to switch your own infant for theirs, knowing it would have been impossible to do so without waking you. Then you look at the child again, and her eyes glow a golden-reddish color. Her wail is a sharp, piercing, otherworldly shriek. And you realize what has happened.
Your child has been whisked away into the World of the Fey. And in your child's stead is a changeling...
Changelings are mortals or faeries who have been switched. Sometimes this term refers to a mortal having been taken into the faery realm. Other times it is a term that refers to a faery taking a child's place in the mortal realm. Faeries are particularly attracted to and are fond of beautiful children, usually ones with golden, fair hair that remind them of the glinting sun. When a child looks pleasing to the faeries, there is some danger of that child being taken or tricked into being taken. Many a fae folk has used his or her wiles in order to trick mothers and fathers into giving up their children (Rumplestiltskin is a good example), and often the faeries are successful.
The fae folk put the mortal changelings to good use. At times, the faery courts take in the changeling in order to bestow gifts upon that mortal (child or adult). After a lengthy time where the mortal serves a particular faery, the faery releases him or her back to the mortal realm, and the mortal tends to come out for the better. More often, however, the case is quite the opposite. The mortal whisked away is used instead as a tithing gift to the underworld in order to keep the world of Fey away from the clutches of Hell. Of course, there are also the cases where the faery is enraptured by a certain mortal, or vice versa; but this is something to be discussed later.
Changelings should be considered a different type of classification because, frankly, these faeries don't really exist anywhere else. Some of them are victims of faeries' covetousness. Others are used as tithes. Still, many more become subjects of mischief and ill will--the Unseelie Court is well known for their unruly switching of children (the sluagh, spriggan and sometimes even the finfolk are particularly fond of this).
In Asturian folklore, the xana are well-known for the exchange of children. These creatures are water spirits that live in fountains and caves, and they are known in Spain to be spirits that replace women's children with their own. In Germany, folklore speaks of the nixie, where a well-known belief is that mortal children that turn into changelings become water spirits, or nixies. The nixie plays many a tale in Grimms faery tales, especially as clever water spirits that trick parents into giving away their children.
The next morning, you say hello to the little one, greeting her with a cheerful, refreshing smile. But you begin to lose the smile because there, right there, you discover that the waking infant is no longer your child. You look around, panic-stricken, thinking who on earth managed to switch your own infant for theirs, knowing it would have been impossible to do so without waking you. Then you look at the child again, and her eyes glow a golden-reddish color. Her wail is a sharp, piercing, otherworldly shriek. And you realize what has happened.
Your child has been whisked away into the World of the Fey. And in your child's stead is a changeling...
Changelings are mortals or faeries who have been switched. Sometimes this term refers to a mortal having been taken into the faery realm. Other times it is a term that refers to a faery taking a child's place in the mortal realm. Faeries are particularly attracted to and are fond of beautiful children, usually ones with golden, fair hair that remind them of the glinting sun. When a child looks pleasing to the faeries, there is some danger of that child being taken or tricked into being taken. Many a fae folk has used his or her wiles in order to trick mothers and fathers into giving up their children (Rumplestiltskin is a good example), and often the faeries are successful.
The fae folk put the mortal changelings to good use. At times, the faery courts take in the changeling in order to bestow gifts upon that mortal (child or adult). After a lengthy time where the mortal serves a particular faery, the faery releases him or her back to the mortal realm, and the mortal tends to come out for the better. More often, however, the case is quite the opposite. The mortal whisked away is used instead as a tithing gift to the underworld in order to keep the world of Fey away from the clutches of Hell. Of course, there are also the cases where the faery is enraptured by a certain mortal, or vice versa; but this is something to be discussed later.
Changelings should be considered a different type of classification because, frankly, these faeries don't really exist anywhere else. Some of them are victims of faeries' covetousness. Others are used as tithes. Still, many more become subjects of mischief and ill will--the Unseelie Court is well known for their unruly switching of children (the sluagh, spriggan and sometimes even the finfolk are particularly fond of this).
In Asturian folklore, the xana are well-known for the exchange of children. These creatures are water spirits that live in fountains and caves, and they are known in Spain to be spirits that replace women's children with their own. In Germany, folklore speaks of the nixie, where a well-known belief is that mortal children that turn into changelings become water spirits, or nixies. The nixie plays many a tale in Grimms faery tales, especially as clever water spirits that trick parents into giving away their children.
'Now, ye maun go wi me,' she said,
'True Thomas, ye maun go wi' me, And ye maun serve me seven years, Thro weal or woe, as chance to be.' - Faery Queen to Thomas Excerpt from "Thomas the Rhymer" Then there are, of course, the notable fae folk who have either succumbed to the Faery Queen or some part of culture in the faery realm. The poem above is only a piece of a story about True Thomas, who meets the Faery Queen along the road. Resplendent in white and riding her faery horse (also white), the Faery Queen entices True Thomas to come with her to the Otherworld. She entreats him and tells him that he will have gifts that only the fae folk can give, and in exchange he would serve the Faery Queen for seven years. Rather than pass up this grand offer, True Thomas agrees, and he becomes a part of the faery realm. Seven years pass and True Thomas returns to the mortal world, a true changeling.
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O I forbid you, maidens all,
That wear gold in your hair, To come or go by Carterhaugh, For young Tam Lin is there. - Excerpt from "The Ballad of Tam Lin" Like True Thomas, Tam Lin is a stuff of changeling folklore. In many tales--including the Scottish ballad about him--Tam Lin is a man living between the mortal and faery world. He is enraptured by the Faery Queen. Maidens are warned off from this creature because Tam Lin has the power to bewitch and charm the maiden into all sorts of trouble. In a few variations, Tam Lin can be sprung free from the Faery Queen if a maiden held onto him long enough for him to transform into various creatures. If successful, the maiden would free Tam Lin and the hero would return to the mortal realm for good.
The Faery Queen is not the only ruler of the faery court that tends to take changelings under her service. In fact, there is also Finvarra, the High King of the Daoine Sidhe. According to Irish folklore, Finvarra is a kind faery, often seen as bringing good luck to harvests and aiding in the production of strong horses. However, Finvarra is also known to be fond of mortal women, and just as frequently as he brings about good harvests, he snatches women and makes them changelings. |
Faery Charmers
"Erlking" by Peter Mohrbacher
Things get rather tricky here, as I don't want to get into too much detail about the art of faery seduction. Let's just say that these faeries are masters of their craft, and some are better at charming humans more than others. Beauty, music, and enchantingly breathtaking glimpses of the Otherworld are their best weapons, and even the strong-willed might find their paths being highly corrupted by a seducer. Anyway, here are just a number of those rather charming faeries at their best.
Ielles
The Ielles are often said to be "too dangerous to be called by their real name." Romanian folklore barely speaks of them or even refers to them as the Ielles, and even then, this is just the name to describe the group. In other cultures, they are said to be the shadows of the Erinnyes, Greek deities attributed to vengeance. Vengeance is definitely close to what the Ielles exact, but like charmers of this section, the Ielles are mostly known for their heavenly beauty. They are shapeshifters as well, and many times reward those who remain humble in their presence. Those that they find to be spoiled braggarts are justly punished.
Reynardine
There is an English ballad about Reynardine that is highly similar to the one about Tam Lin. In the ballad, maidens are warned not to go into the mountains, for that is where the fox-man Reynardine preys upon his victims. He is perhaps a mixture of the legends of Tam Lin and those of werewolves; except of course, Reynardine turns into a fox, not a wolf. It is said that in these High Mountains, Reynardine has a castle where he takes the women he's charmed. It is slightly unclear what happens to the women in the castle, but since Reynardine goes through quite a number of females in these tales, it is safe to say that he's done them in like Bluebeard. An interesting note is that there is actually a tale about Reynardine that mimics the same plot as "The Robber Bridegroom" by the Brothers Grimm.
Glaistig
The glaistig is a Scottish creature, the female equivalent to the male satyr--that is, half of the glaistig's body is that of a goat. The glaistig's form at the top is that of a beautiful woman with long, flowing hair. She is often dressed in a long, flowing green dress that covers her goat body, and she is sometimes even referred to as "The Green Lady." There are two different versions of what a glaistig does to humans; one mentions her help in the protection of cattle. The other, more malignant glaistig is the one that lures men to her home. She does this through a song, where men are enchanted and led along by her voice; or she does this through her presence, where she dances them to her lair. Either way, the man ends up in the same predicament. The triumphant glaistig would then proceed to drink her victim's blood (vampire much?).
Erlking
The erlking is a German folkloric creature and always depicted as an evil, Unseelie-type faery. The erlking is a forest creature and very similar to Tam Lin. Except, where Tam Lin is usually limited to the forests of Caterhaugh, the erlking seems to encompass the forests in general. What would happen if Tam Lin and the erlking both appeared in the same forest? Imagine how many maidens they'd have carried off by then! Unlike Tam Lin, however, the erlking's victims are much more prone to doom than Tam Lin's. Once finished luring a woman into the forest with his voice, the erlking rides off into the woods with his catch, who is never to be seen again. One can only guess what happens to that poor woman, eh?
Hulder
Scandinavian folklore talks of the hulder, another set of forest creatures that shapeshift to lure men and women to do their bidding. The huldra is the female version, mostly depicted as a beautiful woman. However, beauty is not necessarily an attribute to the majority of the hulder. In most cases, once the glamour (or the magic/enchantment) is cast off from a hulder, that hulder might look like the most revolting creature in the face of the planet. Many stories revolving the huldra usually warn men into staying away from them. They are, after all, creatures of the world of Fey; and anyone dabbling in this world can easily perish.
Ielles
The Ielles are often said to be "too dangerous to be called by their real name." Romanian folklore barely speaks of them or even refers to them as the Ielles, and even then, this is just the name to describe the group. In other cultures, they are said to be the shadows of the Erinnyes, Greek deities attributed to vengeance. Vengeance is definitely close to what the Ielles exact, but like charmers of this section, the Ielles are mostly known for their heavenly beauty. They are shapeshifters as well, and many times reward those who remain humble in their presence. Those that they find to be spoiled braggarts are justly punished.
Reynardine
There is an English ballad about Reynardine that is highly similar to the one about Tam Lin. In the ballad, maidens are warned not to go into the mountains, for that is where the fox-man Reynardine preys upon his victims. He is perhaps a mixture of the legends of Tam Lin and those of werewolves; except of course, Reynardine turns into a fox, not a wolf. It is said that in these High Mountains, Reynardine has a castle where he takes the women he's charmed. It is slightly unclear what happens to the women in the castle, but since Reynardine goes through quite a number of females in these tales, it is safe to say that he's done them in like Bluebeard. An interesting note is that there is actually a tale about Reynardine that mimics the same plot as "The Robber Bridegroom" by the Brothers Grimm.
Glaistig
The glaistig is a Scottish creature, the female equivalent to the male satyr--that is, half of the glaistig's body is that of a goat. The glaistig's form at the top is that of a beautiful woman with long, flowing hair. She is often dressed in a long, flowing green dress that covers her goat body, and she is sometimes even referred to as "The Green Lady." There are two different versions of what a glaistig does to humans; one mentions her help in the protection of cattle. The other, more malignant glaistig is the one that lures men to her home. She does this through a song, where men are enchanted and led along by her voice; or she does this through her presence, where she dances them to her lair. Either way, the man ends up in the same predicament. The triumphant glaistig would then proceed to drink her victim's blood (vampire much?).
Erlking
The erlking is a German folkloric creature and always depicted as an evil, Unseelie-type faery. The erlking is a forest creature and very similar to Tam Lin. Except, where Tam Lin is usually limited to the forests of Caterhaugh, the erlking seems to encompass the forests in general. What would happen if Tam Lin and the erlking both appeared in the same forest? Imagine how many maidens they'd have carried off by then! Unlike Tam Lin, however, the erlking's victims are much more prone to doom than Tam Lin's. Once finished luring a woman into the forest with his voice, the erlking rides off into the woods with his catch, who is never to be seen again. One can only guess what happens to that poor woman, eh?
Hulder
Scandinavian folklore talks of the hulder, another set of forest creatures that shapeshift to lure men and women to do their bidding. The huldra is the female version, mostly depicted as a beautiful woman. However, beauty is not necessarily an attribute to the majority of the hulder. In most cases, once the glamour (or the magic/enchantment) is cast off from a hulder, that hulder might look like the most revolting creature in the face of the planet. Many stories revolving the huldra usually warn men into staying away from them. They are, after all, creatures of the world of Fey; and anyone dabbling in this world can easily perish.
World of Faery
The Faery Realm is a dangerous place to step into. But the mortal realm can be just as dangerous for its proximity to the Otherworld. The fae folk run rampant in both, their magic or glamour an integral part in their visits between worlds. These creatures, whether good or evil, beautiful or ugly, should never be underestimated. They encompass many areas of nature. They live in vast natural environments, and they can appear whenever the mood hits them to do so. The fae folk are manifestations of nature and magic. And if you cross these creatures, you better be prepared to behave yourselves, because goodness knows what kind of mischief they plan to dish out should you offend them in the slightest.