Winter Solstice Light Blessing

Keep the dark at bay

During the winter solstice, the people of Kloevenlev gather together along with Fae diplomats to ward off Dark Entities. Every year on the day of the winter solstice, the protective light spells around Kloevendal are renewed. To do this, light fae and Fae Marked humans work together to perform this spell.

The fae generally hide away from humans as much as possible, and they're generally distrusting of us. But ever since we resolved the grave misunderstanding 27 years ago, we have been unlikely allies and friends!
It is an honour to be trusted by the fae, and we are very thankful for their participation in the Light Blessing year after year.

— Kersil Selen, Clover Chief of Kloevenlev in Kloevendal

Execution of the Annual Light Blessing

The people of Kloevendal will meet up in the town square at noon on the day of the winter solstice. With them, they bring candles, matches and lots of warm clothes. A designated group will also bring ingredients to cook dinner with along with beverages for everyone.

The humans will walk together to the Arch of Harmony where they will await the arrival of the fae delegation tasked with aiding in the ceremony. This delegation usually arrives half an hour before the sun sets on the horizon.
Usually, the people of Kloevenlev arrive at the Arch before the Fae, and they spend the time setting up the cooking area and preparing everyone for the event.

To-do List (winter solstice!)

• Bring candle (the new green ones!)
• Match sticks
• Ale!
• Cheeses for cheese platter
• Firewood

— Note written by a human
ahead of the winter solstice

When the fae arrive, a short meal will commence, to strengthen everyone before the spell will be cast.
After the meal, the fae-marked humans and the fae will gather in a long line and stand side by side. The humans who aren't able to do magic will have a lit candle in their hands as a way to participate in the ceremony as well as light up the darkness that has begun to fall over the group.
The spell will be done while the magic users all hold hands, and at the end of the spell casting, they will raise their joined hands to the sky and move them down towards the earth to signify that they cast the warding spell everywhere.

After party

Afterwards, if the weather allows it, there is live music, finger food and drinks for those in attendance. Generally, the fae bring their own special beverages containing Mocory Nuts, which the humans don't get to drink, as it would lead to Fae-Food Induced Trance.
Bonfires are lit all around the Arch of Harmony to help everyone keep warm. The winter solstice afterparty lasts until the sun rises again and the celebration ends with everyone cheering that they made it through the darkest day of the year, unscathed.

History

This tradition was established quite recently and has only been around for just under 3 decades. The Light Blessing became a tradition after the Fae Incident of 1557. The Fae had signed their peace treaty at Kloevendal, and when they discovered the humans there, they thought they had bad intentions. However, the misunderstanding was resolved due to a very diplomatically skilled Clover Chief named Kersil Selen. The fae decided that they didn't have an issue with the human settlement and apologized for the almost-all-out attack.
When the fae heard that the humans had not just built a town, but also gone to great lengths to take care of the Arch of Harmony and restored it after especially bad weather, the fae were very thankful. The Arch was significant to them because it was the location where all the different fae leaders signed the Treaty of Kloevendal, officially ending The Thousand Year War.
With this new knowledge, the fae decided that the humans of Kloevenlev were not just welcome to keep living in the valley but that they were worth protecting. The most imminent threat to the Kloeves came from the dark entities, which rampaged most of Dysvoll. The dark entities are creatures of dark energy who come out during the dark hours to destroy and lay waste to anything they can come near. This horrible threat only got worse during the winters, were fewer hours of sunlight meant that the creatures had even more time to destroy, mangle and murder.

Spreading the knowledge

The Fae agreed to teach the humans how to do warding spells in an effort to keep the townspeople safe from the rampaging dark entities. The Kloeves had a positive attitude towards magic unlike many other cultures, and so they readily accepted the offer.
The Light Fae taught all the fae-marked humans how to do the warding spell against dark entities. The idea was, that the humans would pass down the knowledge to the next generations. Furthermore, they decided that on the darkest day of the year, the fae would visit the humans and help them renew the warding spell. With the collective power of the visiting fae and the resident Spell-caster, the warding spell should be strong enough to last until the next winter solstice.

Primary Related Location

Kloevendal

Important Locations

• Arch of Harmony
• Kloevenlev

Related Organizations

• High Fae Court

Related Ethnicities

• Kloeves

First celebrated 1557 ADF
(after the Fae Incident of 1557)

Fewer cases of Magic Rot

A prevalent issue for human magic users lies in the dangers of using magic without much experience or knowledge. An unfortunate side effect of using magic carelessly is a condition known as Magic Rot. Magic Rot causes mental decay as well as bodily harm and can lead to death.
There are significantly fewer cases among humans in Kloevendal than humans in the rest of Dysvoll. This is primarily due to the fae teaching the humans how to use magic correctly. This means that fewer humans die due to magic use and has also led to an even better opinion of magic in the small community.