Seelie
The Seelie Court is the embodiment of the unrelenting heat of summer combined with the rejuvenating growth of spring. The court exemplifies light, new life, and order. It sees itself as the protector of Kithain society and the guardian of Glamour.
Above all, the Seelie Court values community the most. Community is the bedrock of the Seelie Court. Its code grows out the Seelie need for harmony and the rule of law.
Without a solid foundation, society would crumble to anarchy.
The Seelie Court, with its emphasis on tradition and love, provides that foundation. Upon it, they plan to build a grand edifice to raise the Kithain and the Dreaming back to their former glory. A typical Seelie changeling would be fine with history never knowing her name, as long as she knows she contributed to something grander than herself. That’s not to say a Seelie changeling doesn’t have personal desires; she’s just willing to make sacrifices for the greater good.
Tradition is the framework upon which Seelie society rests. The pageantry and rituals serve as thread that runs through the ages, tying the generations together. They form the basis of fond memories for a changeling of experiences shared with her parents that she can’t wait to share with her children. Tales of legends and glorious deeds show a member of the Seelie Court her place in the grand tapestry of Kithain history. Their customs and lore serve as the glue that binds each individual to one another.
If tradition is the structure, stewardship is the spirit of Seelie society. Lord and vassal work together to foster and protect the community they so lovingly built together. Her subjects tend to the balefires, build necessary infrastructure, and man the defenses, while the leader herself organizes everyone to best leverage their abilities for the community and ensure they blossom into their full potential. A Seelie changeling’s highest calling, though, is stewardship over Glamour. As long as Glamour exists, Kithain society will endure. She’ll work tirelessly to find and cultivate any potential Dreamers, planting the seeds that will grow into a wellspring of Glamour.
When Glamour is threatened, she erupts with all the fiery intensity of summer, willing to fight until her last breath in defense of any freehold or Dreamer.
While Seelie changelings admire their Unseelie brethren’s passion, the Seelie feel they can be dangerously reckless. Often, the Unseelie seem unstable or untrustworthy — too willing to throw away society’s structures without enough consideration for why they were established in the first place. At their worst, the Unseelie are seen as deadly anarchists, eager to tear asunder every scrap of Glamour for some selfish, wasteful flight of fancy.
Culture
The Seelie Code is the philosophy that underlies the Seelie Court. It is more than a simple adage. It directs the thoughts and actions of all Seelie changelings. The four tenets of the Seelie Code are “death before dishonor,” “love conquers all,” “beauty is life,” and “never forget a debt.”
Death before dishonor.
Everyone, from the lofty noble on his throne to the lowly chambermaid, has their duties in a well-organized society. Without everyone working together, doing what’s expected of them, society would not be able to support itself. Honor represents a changeling’s standing in his community based on his ability to fulfill his expected role. If he fails or shirks his duty, he doesn’t just disappoint herself — he disappoints everyone who relies on him. To be dishonored is to call his value to society into question. Without purpose, what is the point of life for a Seelie changeling? He would rather die, upholding the health and safety of those around him, than live with the destruction of his community because he was too weak or cowardly to stop it.Love conquers all.
Love is considered the greatest virtue among the Seelie. Love underlies every aspect of a changeling’s life — love of lord, love of subordinates, love of household, love of family. It is the bond that holds a community together. It provides strength when a changeling is at her weakest and comfort when she’s at her lowest. While all Seelie changelings participate in courtly love, true love is the most sacred form of love to the court, and all within aspire to it. True love em- bodies the core of their philosophy: two incomplete individuals joining together into one unified whole. When the Kithain act as one through love, no force on Earth or in the Dreaming can stop them from achieving their goal.Beauty is life.
The Seelie Court sees beauty everywhere, permeating every facet of existence. On the surface level, beauty is an aesthetic. It manifests when an individual is true to himself and his being. A pooka taking pride in his animalistic features and a sluagh embracing the darkness each have their own grace. Even a lifetime of tragedy and loss has its own poignancy. The act of creation holds an inherent beauty. Each new work of art, new performance, and new thought is a unique manifestation of creativity undreamed of in the world before. Its fleetingness and fragility is the basis for all Glamour. Underlying everything is the beauty of transcendence. The whole of the world, Earth and the Dreaming, is but a flawed reflection of Arcadia’s perfection. Beauty must be preserved because it is the basis for all life.Never forget a debt.
Society cannot operate effectively without an inherent fairness. In order to keep their interactions fair, Seelie changelings give back in equal measure to anything they use. A favor is always paid back with a reciprocating favor. An object or service given is returned with something of equal value. Anyone who goes the extra mile for a changeling is owed just that much more in return. Loyalty deserves fidelity, and acrimony deserves hatred. Likewise, Seelie changelings have an expectation of justice. If something is stolen from someone or she is harmed, she expects redress through the Kithain legal system. Barring that, the Seelie Court will make no official moves to stop her in a quest for vengeance, as long as she seeks to merely balance the scales and nothing more. The greatest debt a Seelie changeling feels is to the community that fostered her and gave her the opportunity to come into her own.
Controlled Territories
Notable Members
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