Bunce

Bunces are, quite simply, rabbit people. They don’t see themselves as fairies (divinely uplifted rabbits, instead), but odds are they’re fairies. Most everything else in Chinkapin is, after all. They’re short, sturdy folk, averaging around three feet tall, and while most have agouti fur some prominent families have more distinctive coat patterns. Bunces are probably the most numerous villagers in Chinkapin.
(Note: as a group they are called bunces, but individuals are called buns.)

The bunces have two main claims to fame: their quartz and their squashes.
Most of the quartz mining is open-cast mining; there is a major active quarry and an inactive quarry lake near the village. They also venture into the Quartz Caves themselves in search of crystals or to do additional digging. Fire-setting is seen as traditional and a more respectful way to open up quartz veins, but some buns avail themselves of explosives from the hobs. Quartz crystals found in the caves are used for artistic and ritual purposes. Quartz sand (mostly from the quarry) is used for various purposes, but mostly exported to the wisps for use in glassmaking.
By far the majority of bunces are farmers, and the magical squashes are their primary crop. There are several varieties, from enormous goosenecks large enough to pull carts, to little squashcats that patrol for mice. Squash meat is considered a local delicacy, and even outsiders will buy a Chinkapin Squash. Inspecting and governing the squash breeding is an issue for the Bunce elders, who guard it jealousy against interference from the county seat or the human world.
A few important families are known for other products as well--one family, for instance, breeds cockatrices, while the Angora clan produce fine textiles.

Chickens and magical squash are about the only livestock you’ll find on a bunce farm. There are a few breeds of chickens, some from the outside human world but a few developed in the county. Black chickens are considered good luck. Chickens are primarily raised for eggs, although some farmers will sell the meat as well. The family with the cockatrices… well, nobody’s really sure what they raise those things for.
Squashes come in many varieties, all of which are carefully governed by the breeding rules of the elders. They are grown from seed, fed on the vine with goat’s milk and other secret ingredients until their awakening, at which point feed varies depending on the breed. They range in size from little hand-sized gourdlets, to big pumpkins with tender “meat,” to massive goosenecks capable of hauling large loads. There’s a squash for every purpose.
There are even squashcats. Because owning a cat is an utterly ludicrous idea to any Chinkapin citizen (cats belong to themselves, thank you), farmers who can’t persuade a cat to take up residence need pest control. The bunces have bred a catlike variety of squash, which does actually eat mice and other pests. Squashcats are friendly but a little dimwitted.

Basic Information

Ecology and Habitats

Bunce houses are dugouts. These have partial timbered frames, as the soil of Chinkapin is too clayey to support proper sod construction. The shapes tend to be low and spreading, with most of the living space underground in a series of cellars. Animals (squash and chickens) are kept close to the house in pens and lean-tos. They don’t tend to build extensive tunnel work, as it’s impractical, but every home has an escape run with an opening somewhere well away from the house.

Dietary Needs and Habits

The bunces are ovo-lacto vegetarians (though they don’t usually consume animal milk themselves, preferring to reserve it for feeding squashes and to use squash “milk” for their cooking and baking). They love hearty foods; soups and stews with rich dumplings and noodles, breads, cakes, pies, pretzels, etc. Magical squash “meat” and “milk” are a large part of their diet, as well as plenty of root vegetables and leafy vegetables (and apples!). They are big on pickling, including pickled eggs and pretty much any fruit or vegetable that can conceivably be pickled. They make some good beers, too.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Bunce kits are raised by a variety of relatives, as they live in large family groups. Adolescents usually have childrearing duties once a youngster is weaned.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Since most of them are farmers, bunces live spread out across a region in the middle of the county, on the western side of the river. They have three major settlements, centers of trade and religion, but these are not home to the majority of the population. There are plenty of them in the county seat, as well.

Civilization and Culture

Common Myths and Legends

The bunces, like the bones, profess to be Christians, in keeping with the influences of the larger culture. They are similar in liturgy and many doctrines to Lutherans, but they have a few theological peculiarities. One is that they believe themselves to be uplifted rabbits, not fairies; the stricted bunce theologians (there are not many) would say that everyone else in Chinkapin lacks an immortal soul. They also venerate saints, in a casually quasi-Catholic way, including a popular trio of folk saints--Saint Jackalope, the Rabbit Saint, and the Laughing Saint. Finally, a few rabbits known as Wolfsingers or Wolfspeakers practice anti-wolf magic (which probably works, increasing the likelihood that they are actually fairies).