Dreams and Shadows

chapter SEVENTEEN

THE DEVIL’S DUE

An excerpt by Dr. Thaddeus Ray, Ph.D., from his book A Chronicle of the Dreamfolk

There are few things in this world more insidious than the notion of tithing the Devil. Certainly there are more violent acts and more stomach-turning deeds to be found among the habits of the fae, but none are so deliberately thought out or so cruelly and coldly enacted as that of the Tithe.

While many tales exist of its origin, most point to a deal struck by the fae sometime before the Common Era. Popular tales insist that fairies once had incredibly brief life spans, most never living long enough to see their teen years. They left behind no art, no literature, and no tangible mark on the world at all. Generation after generation of fairy were born of this world, lived, and then died in it, while the world went on mostly unaware that they were ever here. They tried desperately to find a way to live longer, with no success, until the Devil himself offered them a deal.

If they were willing to sacrifice one of their own once every seven years during the darkest part of the night on the darkest night of the year, he would grant them extraordinarily long lives that would dwarf even those experienced by human beings. They would be seemingly immortal, outlasting entire generations of men. That sacrifice was called the Tithe.

They accepted. The fairies drew lots every seven years and one unlucky fairy would accept his or her fate. Soon after that, when their extended lives carried them into their forties or fifties, they began selecting the fairy who was the eldest among them and ended its life for the sake of them all. If, however, they did not select a fairy on the night and hour that the Devil demanded, he would himself come and take one of his own choosing—usually the purest among them.

But as the years wore on and the fae discovered the sheer length of their near immortality, they began to relish it. They wondered why they should have to eventually give up their lives for a deal made ages ago by fairies no longer around. It is believed that it was the Tuatha De Danann who first attempted the practice of child tithing and that it was this shame that forced them beneath the hills from which they would later claim their name: Sidhe. What is known is that the first Tithe Child sealed the bargain forever and that, unbeknownst to the descendants of the first dealmakers, the Devil had included a clause stating that if ever a being not born of fae blood was offered up, fairies would spend eternity out of time, loosed from its stream. Thus fairyland, and fairy time with it, was born.

While there are a number of tales that dispute various aspects of the story, what is certain are the rules and how they are presently meted out. Children are taken as infants, often replaced by changelings to disguise the kidnapping, and brought to live amongst the fairies. There they are raised on fairy milk and food handled only by the fairies themselves. This has two effects. The first is that over time the magic of the fae seeps into the essence of the child and allows them, if they so choose, to become a fairy when they are old enough—usually about nine or ten. The second is that consuming fairy food prevents them from ever leaving without the consent of the head of the court (usually a king).

The ritual changing of a child into a fairy is often carried out on the same night as the Tithe. The reasons for this are unclear and are said to vary from court to court. Regardless, once the child is a fairy, they are sacrificed, their soul offered up to the Devil.

As each court is liable for its own tithing, fairies tend to group together geographically in as large a group as possible to limit both their responsibility as well as their odds of being selected if the tithing does not go as planned. This is the core principle behind any governing fae body and the reason so many fairies of different type and disposition will allow themselves to be ruled by a single figure or council. Fairies that go it alone quickly find themselves collected and dragged unwillingly to Hell.

Children raised for this purpose are rarely aware of their role in the community and often believe that they will live out long lives among the fairies they are raised with. It is only in the last moments of their lives that they are afforded a glimpse into the true hearts and intentions of the fairy court they serve.