Do Pig-Faced Folk have their own language, if they've lost their human voices?

They have developed a complex sign language to use amongst themselves, and some have actually trained their vocal cords to mimic a good portion of the common tongue after years of practice.

Seems like it should also be part of my Court duty as a unicorn to liaise with these Seelie Pig-Faced stewards.

It certainly wouldn’t hurt. In your later years there will be four active stewards from the Pig-Faced folk. They have to contend with a couple of brownies and a very crotchety old hob who have neighboring territories to tend.

Ah, to be blessed with smaller problems and disputes again.

It might be a refreshing change of pace

Sebastian: Great. Now even if I try to escape Enedia's realm into the side, I'm greeted with people who look like I am now. *snort*

William the Boar: *tending to a small sapling damaged by a recent storm* That’s a fine greeting from a stranger. Though, I can’t say that I enjoy the way I look, either. If my face offends you, I will make an effort to stay out of your way, so long as you leave everything as you find it.

Sebastian: No, no, your face does not offend. I'm just more offended that others have ended up in such a position like mine. ...although, you act far too kindly for someone who is known to be cursed with this face. Not the first to cursed, I am guessing. Coming from a line of cursed members of family?

William: *nods ashamedly, not quite able to look Sebastian in the eye* I am the fifth generation of my family to carry the burden. I don’t expect you’re from here if you don’t use our hand-language?

Sebastian: No, I'm not. From a different realm. First generation myself. I'm the one that caused my family to change. I have to live with this until the one who changed me dies. And it isn't going to be soon. ...you mentioned hand-language, is that your main form of speaking?

William: *nods* That is a heavy burden to bear. I am sorry that it is yours.
Yes, for most of my kind. Some have the discipline to re-learn the human tongue, but the others rely on hand signals.

Sebastian: Consider me fortunate to keep my human tongue, for as much trouble as it gives me. The worst part about all of what has happened to me is that it was thrust upon me, or else the woman I love and my child who was barely grown would be slain.

William: You accepted your curse to save your family?

Sebastian: I didn't know about the curse, as much as my wife doesn't know about what I did to save them. I don't know how long it has been since she last spoke to me.

William: That sounds like a heavy burden.

Cue mix-ups with people cosplaying as Gamorreans.

XD Fair point

Acrathia: *Sarcastically* Yes, because clearly its the child's fault their parents were greedy exploitative bastards who sought to use the magicks for selfish purposes, and obviously they are the ones who should suffer for it. I will never understand the point of generational curses...

The Wild Magicks are like cinematographers. They love a good hero's journey, redemption arc, triumph over difficult odds, or in certain cases all three at once.

Indeed, they don't seem to have much empathy for the backdrops those scenes may demand. So many like-cursed people who fail to overcome the poor hands they were dealt through no fault of their own... The luster of the glorious success stories often depends on many less happy endings for contrast.

One of the negative aspects of balance... you have to have harship, 'failures' and 'bad endings' to give the successful ones meaning. I don't like it either, but as a vessel and avatar for the Wild Magicks myself, I may do what I can, I can always try, but even I can't overstep the set-down boundaries wherever they may lie.

Acrathia: Except there is no redemption arc. There is no balance. The children did not commit the crime, their parents did. The way most of these events go is that the great great grandchildren, who had nothing at all to do said crime, break the curse while the ones truly responsible are long since dead. Resting when they do not deserve such rest. But apparently necromancy is far more heinous than punishing innocents, so the guilty get off scott free with death while their descendants suffer. One of the many issues I clashed with the Seelie Court over.

Individually no, no there isn't. The 'balance' dictated by the Wild Magicks is concerned with the 'bigger picture' and tars them all with the same brush. Thus, there are only so many chances at escaping the past to go around, and it's forbidden to know in advance how they're distributed. It's a lottery the children didn't ask for. As with those lured to Il Paese and the small number that you're allowed to help rescue, I don't have to like it any more than you do. There isn't much difference between discrimination of the Wulvers, and Pig-Faced Folk discriminating themselves through shame and self-dislike they didn't earn. But at least their lives can be given better comfort, succor and reward.

Acrathia: Yes... so I have often been told... and I suppose it makes sense in a grand cosmic sort of way... after all, the descendents are given the opportunity to be so much greater than their ancestors were... provided they succeed against much harsh conditions than their originators... but it has never sat well with me, it seems fundamentally wrong. I suppose that is why I have always been far more aligned with vengeance than justice...

*snorts* 'Justice'? Of course it isn't just. What do the Wild Magicks care about moral values? That would involve having to pick sides.

'Tis the very reason the Guardians needeth to exist at all.

And what about me, for instance? I just happened to be a suitable mortal in a suitable place at a suitable time. I don't even have the excuse of 'birthright'. You think most fae creatures would consider that 'fair' if they sat down and thought about it for a minute? This form came to be out of necessity to rescue a deteriorating situation. But with the scale of this blessing, I would have taken it on anyway. I want to do my best for the less fortunate, I consider it a duty, even for those more powerful but burdened with dilemmas and quagmires of their own; Goodfellow, Azura, Moth if she would ever let me, or as you yourself have been. It's our own choices that determine our alignments with Fate, not the Wild Magicks within me.

*blowing through lips...

God, I must sound like a stuck record sometimes but everything in this ridiculous land eventually rolls back around to Fate, one way or another. You respond to it, it responds to you; either one accepts their lot or must change themselves in the present to change their projected future; a concept many immortals with a more nebulous grasp of what 'the future' even is have trouble accepting. Even my mortal sensibilities wasn't immune to that; in my early hubris I thought I could fight the system, and I got my ass kicked. So did you, a long time ago. So now our way of challenging back is through rescuing others where we can from fighting the same losing battle. It riles the buggers upstairs to lose a pawn here and there.

Acrathia: I am well aware of the ambiguity of the Wild Magicks and Fate as a larger picture. I also agree that they would not see what had transpired as justice, but rather more consequences without attaching any semblance of morality to the affair. As much as I disagree with the targets of their ire, I acknowledge that there is a measure of chaos and unpredictability with what occurs. My annoyance lies with the Seelie Court which uses such occurrences as "proof" of them doing so as "justice" when they themselves are dealing with mortals. They claim that if Fate, The Guardians, and the Wild Magicks do so, then the use of generational curses must be acceptable for them as well. After all, holding the child accountable for the sins of the parent is the only acceptable way to ensure that "justice" is done when mortals have so much shorter lifespans than the fae, and the use of necromancy to ensure the one truly responsible for the crime can pay, is far too icky for their delicate sensibilities. Not to mention justifying mistreatment and neglect of the pig faced folk and wulvers because "their ancestors did something to justify how we treat them."

Ohhhhh. THAT's a whole different facet. I should have been more aware of that one... the uh, 'retributions' that have come within my range of experience have been more immediate, or else needlessly cruel long after the fact and crossing a different line.

Leaving necromancy aside, does the court recognise then that such a system, any system, of what they learn by example to 'justice' must equally apply to themselves as well? Because Fate does.

Thou asketh as if you question-

We know.

Enedia: ...I see.

Acrathia: This is not a criticism of you love. True, I am not thrilled that the Boar Knights descendents are affected. But you were young when you cast that spell, whether you intended the curse to be generational or not, it was still impressive that it managed to manifest that way. It also seems that you take much more responsibility than most who cast such curses, taking them in and giving them a place to stay as opposed to letting them fend for themselves

But that's a staple of fairy lore. It's tradition at this point.

Acrathia: And one that has been long overdue for retirement if you ask me. From the beginning I have suggested that necromancy could be used to hold mortals accountable, if death was truly not enough to balance the scales, but those fools at the Seelie Court found the idea too distasteful for their delicate sensibilities. Apparently punishing those who had nothing to do with the crime, but have the dreadful misfortune of being related to guilty party was far more acceptable.

I mean, necromancy in general is kinda distasteful. I'm more in favor of taking action sooner, so you punish the right people while they're doing the thing that's wrong.

Punish them too soon and too harshly and the children may not get to exist at all. The rationale of the Wild Magicks is as long as there is a 'lesson', there is a 'story'.

The punishment should fit the crime, obviously.

Naturally. But think of the Wild Magicks like the electricity that powers a computer running a program. The electricity is a force, the program allows for no external exceptions, it's not sentience as we would qualify it, you can't reason with it any more than you can the weather.

But you should be able to with people. The objection Acrathia has is in the Seelie Court, instead of thinking for themselves, wilfully allowing that program to instruct them on how to behave. There's the philosophical edge of 'if the Wild Magicks told you to jump off a cliff, would you do it'.

*the Wild Magicks, lacking a current ‘spokesperson’ entity, speak in a concerted chorus of natural sounds*

When mortals cease to value what is material, we strike deeper to something they truly hold dear. Our aim is that they might mend their flaws before the end of their short days, and little motivates them more than their own blood. Their failure, in the unfortunate event that they do fail, is a lesson to those who come after.

But we know you are a natural force as we are, and these lost children are yours to fight for. To fault your instinct is to fault our very essence.

Acrathia: *Gives a deep bow* And as much as I disagree with whom the recipient of the curse is, I can understand and respect why you choose to do so. My ire is with those who would attach morality on the subject and call it justice, where as, I assume, you would simply call it "consequences"

The Wild Magicks: Yes, that is an apt understanding. Many things may masquerade as justice. The scales of nature are not fooled by such games. In this, we agree with your sentiments.

Acrathia: I must ask my dearest, did a shellycoat ever tap in you, and take magicks that did not belong him to curse a human by the name of Percy?

The Wild Magicks: Many have misused our gifts. It is possible.

Acrathia: *looks comtemplative* hmmmmm.... most upsetting if that is the case... considering he used Imoldra's magicks were used to curse another...

The Wild Magicks: Perhaps consequences should come to this shellycoat. It offends our sensibilities that he should use our defenses for his own gain.