Fae Pox

Did you hear that the Blockwillows' new child has Fae Pox? I would hate for that to be me, I'm not sure I'd cope

— Countess Relia

Caused by the awakening of dormant Fae ancestry, this condition not only changes the appearance of the human involved but can also drive them made.

Physical Effects

Children who are affected by Fae Pox will have a number of physical indicators. While there are no universal alterations here is a list of common changes:

• Discolouration of the skin - Common colours include red, green or blue
• Pointed ears
• Exotic iris colourations - Violets, Ambers etc
• Vibrant Hair colours

On top of these more common traits feature such as small antlers, vestigial insect wings and bark formations on the hands can also arise depending on the particular Fae ancestry which was awakened.

Magical Effects

Children with Fae pox do not only change physically. Those affected by Fae Pox will often also gain the ability to cast some simple spells. These spells much like the less common physical traits are largely based on the type of Fae Ancestry that caused the condition. For example, those whos ancestry comes from Nymphs often gain the ability to cast an Orison based around plants. Another example would be those of emberling ancestry who are resistant to being damaged by flames.

Cultural view

Fear

Fae Pox is viewed as a curse by many humans. This is due to the history of violence humans suffered at the hands of the Fae during the Great Calamity. As such Fae Pox children are often ostracised by their communities and in extreme cases killed. This is said to be done in order to prevent the child "falling to instinct" and hurting the people around them, which is a common outcome when Fae Pox children become enraged causes outbursts of their primal magic

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Reverence

While mostly seen Fae Pox as a curse the Astana ancestry of humans views it as a gift. This is due to the Astana's cultural reverence of primal magic which those with Fae Pox can use. As such it is not uncommon for Astanas to take in Fae Pox children who have been abandoned by their parents. This has also allowed them to handle the childrens' more destructive nature when their powers get out of control

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Affected Ancestry

Human

Fae Ancestry

While incredibly rare it is known that a mortal will earn the interest of a Fae spirit. Often this results in the unfortunate human being treated either as a pet or a possession with many being kidnapped and taken to the Fae Wilds never to be seen again.
However, in some of these cases this does not happen and instead after the interaction the Fae will either have a child with the individual or bless their bloodline. In the former this results in a Half-Fae which can then go on to have children with its parent species creating a lineage in which all the decendents will have some trace amount of Fae Ancestry. The Later results in no Fae Ancestry, but there is the possibility of a Humans decendent awakening this blessing. It is this results that leads to children being born with Fae Pox