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September 22 - October 3, 2025
story may be a singular event from the past, but—crucially—it is also a pattern that shapes their behaviour and predicts future events.
I turned to Shadow, curled at my feet. The beast had been watching me with solemn dark eyes, concerned for my well-being in the wake of my panic.
Vladimir Foley’s Guide to Russian Folklore.
Esther May Halliwell’s Essays on Meta-Folklore includes an overview of how our thinking has evolved on this subject,
The Folk were of another world, with its own rules and customs—and to a child who always felt ill-suited to her own world, the lure was irresistible.
The whaler married his faerie bride, and though she remained as shrivelled and unlovely as ever, the whaler never broke his vow to his wife, and she rewarded him with three strong children who drew whales out of the deeps with their beautiful singing. And the whaler died an old, rich man, quite content.
I wish to know the unknowable. To see what no mortal has seen,
To peel back the carpeting of the world and tumble into the stars.”
something is impossible, you cannot be terrible at it.”
would questioning him lighten the sadness or make it worse? Should I (oh, God) attempt to hug him?
violet-grey of a winter dawn.
a bloody Black Hound stared back at me, all glowing eyes and glistening fangs.
Folk disdains human metals, yet the Irish fae are unique in their ability to tolerate—and, indeed, to love—silver.
“I’d rather be inside at my piano, or reading a book.
“I didn’t think so,” Lilja said, giving Margret a just as I said sort of look. “What with how he carries on with the village girls.”
looked at me sometimes, particularly when he thought I wasn’t aware of it, and then I felt hot, then cold, then hot again.
“I suppose I’m just—” I thought it over. “Choosy.”
tête-à-tête.
Crystals of snow nestled in his golden hair, which was very distracting. I am used to ignoring his good looks, but that hair of his is a difficult matter. I’ve observed that most people are taken in by his smile or his eyes, but for me, it’s that damned hair—one can’t help imagining what it feels like, is the problem.
“Aðlinduri!”
It sounds odd to admit that I find the company of such a boisterous person restful, but perhaps it is always restful to be around someone who does not expect anything from you beyond what is in your nature.
“Over anyone else’s company.” Again, he said it with some amusement, as if wondering what I was doing speculating about something so evident.
But then his eyes came open, and he smiled at me with such innocent happiness that my ridiculous heart gave a leap and would have answered him instantly, if it was the organ in charge of my decision-making.
The ring was there, but it was no longer a ring of shadow. It was a ring of ice, polished smooth and patterned with tiny blue crystals.
want me to be uncomfortable en route—it had compelled me to dress warmly, to don boots to prevent frostbite. And perhaps that aspect of the enchantment could be manipulated to my own purpose.
You see, beauty of mind and spirit is what is most important to me in a wife,”
“I adore poetry, and the poets say this is the sort of beauty that matters most. Kindness. Generosity. Forgiveness.”
it is a dishonourable thing for the strong to prey upon the weak,
“The ability to forgive is a great virtue,”
You could never survive without having someone around to snarl at.”
Just because you have a heart filled with the dust of a thousand library stacks does not mean everybody does.
cats have self-respect.
If ever you want to frighten a person, Aud, show them your kitchen.
(How does one respond to tears?)
