Health and Healing

Fae appear to have a range of **healing** ability largely based on status, ranging from that of underfae, which appears roughly equivalent to an average human's, and then increasing in speed and capability as fae rise in status, to King/Queen status, where fae can heal near-fatal injuries, or what would otherwise be fatal to fae of lower status, in extremely short amounts of time, with little to no permanent physical damage. One exception to the higher status = stronger healing capability rule appears to be beast fae, who are a special category of fae, but some of which have higher healing capacity than underfae. Particularly powerful fae, such as Augus Each Uisge, have powerful healing ability even in underfae status.

Fae can heal other fae and animals using magic, the understanding and use of meridians, consuming/using herbal mixtures, and sometimes simply consuming food - whether through one's true appetite or simply regular food as accords with one's species of fae - or even being around one's home environment (e.g., a waterhorse in their or even just a lake, or a fire fae being in/near fire), to replenish energy reserves that allow for natural healing. Alternatively, being starved of an adequate environment for one's species and/or proper sustenance can weaken natural fae healing abilities. In rare cases, fae can feed on their own dra'ocht to survive. Fae can train as healers in different schools and via apprenticeships, although healing is also seemingly innate to certain fae, such as dryads. Some healers, like Augus, are largely self-taught.

Some healers, such as Augus and Pazhna, also make use of human realm technology in their practices, while others, like Aleutia the Rat-Maiden, disdain human technology, in part because fae bodies don't function in the same way as human bodies.

## Mental Health

Mental health does not seem to be prioritized by many fae, with Augus and Fenwrel the Mouse-Maiden being rare exceptions of fae who focus on mental health treatment and management, though maintenance of one's heartsong is intrinsic to a fae's health, and tied into mental and even physical health. Chronic illness and rare illness is also a branch of healing in the fae realm that isn't as popular among most healers, largely because it's mostly an issue for underfae. Chronic pain is seemingly virtually unknown to higher-status fae who have been lucky enough to avoid drastic injury.

## Sleep

'Fae slept deeply, but they also dreamed deeply. Nightmares were crueller, lasted longer, dug their hooks in deep. It wasn’t uncommon for fae who had been traumatised to avoid sleeping, because once driven into the deep recesses of the mind, those nightmares were terribly hard to shake.' Fae of different status can last longer without sleep, but still typically require it to some degree; the higher the status, the longer a fae can typically go without sleeping. Fae can enter a dozing state when they don't feel safe enough to sleep. At least some Court status fae can get by sleeping only once a month.

## The Winnowing

One drastic form of physical health manipulation is **the Winnowing**, which is considered 'a natural way to control the fae population, though no one knew why it happened, only when. A fae had to be tens of thousands of years old, but not yet a hundred thousand. They would be overcome with depression and a yearning to die, and they would be old enough to will it with a simple thought, closing their eyes and asking for death the way some fae could close their eyes and will sleep. Some were hit by it when they were ten thousand, others when they were older.

Any fae that survived it, were treated with a reverence and respect that came from looking at nature’s wish for one to die, and deciding it wasn’t yet time.' The only known fae in the canon to survive it is the Raven Prince.

## Herbs/Mixtures

Plants and other ingredients in the fae realm are often used to encourage healing. One early example in canon was when Pazhna gave Gwyn ap Nudd a mixture to save Augus when Gwyn broke his bones. Aleutia and Augus later aided Gulvi Dubna Vajat by giving her herbal mixtures to heal Julvia Dubna Vajat. Ash Glashtyn and Augus also regularly consumed saltvarra while on the Mantissa to try and mitigate the damaging physical effects of being freshwater fae traveling on the sea.

## Magic

Healers using magic to heal has mostly been limited in the canon to Aleutia, Fenwrel, and Mosk Manytrees. Aleutia and Fenwrel sacrificed years of their own lifespans to save Augus and Ash's lives. They also tried to use magic to heal some of Augus' underworlds pollution. Mosk is unique among dryads for not having healing come naturally to him, and the Raven Prince had to force Mosk to use his healing on Ash, though Mosk worked on his healing and later used it to save Eran Iliakambar's life.

## Meridians

Meridians, which related to the use of pressure points, can be used for 'healing, along with the blocking and release of powers and abilities by manipulating those pressure points'. Fenwrel and Augus both learned from Fluri the Mouse-Maiden, who was very skilled in meridian use. Augus regularly uses the skill to help give Gwyn some relief from his chronic pain.

## Healers

* Aleutia the Rat-Maiden
* Augus Each Uisge
* Fenwrel the Mouse-Maiden
* Mosk Manytrees
* Pazhna
* Terho the Mouse-Lad
* Terho's Healer

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 31 January 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2083339. Chapter 26: Family.
2. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 24 January 2016. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/1775002. Chapter 2: Prologue.
3. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 28 February 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2571883. Chapter 43: Homecoming.
4. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 16 September 2013. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/1904254. Chapter 12: Liver.
5. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 28 May 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/58918213. Chapter 33: End of an Era.
6. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 11 August 2013. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/1791304. Chapter 3: Desperation.
7. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 14 May 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/8820031. Chapter 43: Wildness.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 not\_poignant. "The NIghtingale and Terho the Mouse-Lad." *The Fae Tales Verse, Archive of Our Own,* 5 May 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1571246.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 21 November 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/5922374. Chapter 19: Trust.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 3 - The Ice Plague.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 19 November 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/26266345/chapters/67599242. Chapter 7: Bad Habits.
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 not\_poignant. "Deeper into the Woods." *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 31 March 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/3652500/chapters/8069799. Chapter 1: I - The Waterhorse.
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 22 December 2013. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2204791. Chapter 33: Invisible.
13. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 11 November 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/5741654. Chapter 17: Life.
14. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 22 May 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/8948719. Chapter 44: Nostalgia.
15. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 1 - The Forest of Fire.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 16 February 2018. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12036105/chapters/31475208. Chapter 15: Isn't it Better?
16. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 7 March 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2655808. Chapter 44: Consultation.
17. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 25 October 2013. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2024572. Chapter 22: Stymied.
18. ↑ not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 1 November 2013. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2045073. Chapter 24: Oath.
19. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 21 June 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/45901336. Chapter 8: Stay Right Here.
20. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 15 March 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/42834056. Chapter 2: Flame Upon the Sea.
21. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 2 January 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/6705320. Chapter 24: Listen.
22. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 23 January 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/7005020. Chapter 27: Healing.
23. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 6 February 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/53990812. Chapter 25: Reversals.
24. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 3 - The Ice Plague.” *Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 17 December 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/26266345/chapters/68919276. Chapter 9: Oswal-Tay.
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 18 June 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4283271. Chapter 4: Suspicions.
26. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 1 August 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4478196. Chapter 5: Unsolicited.
27. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 15 August 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4677888. Chapter 6: Predicament.
28. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 19 September 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/5127665. Chapter 10: Battlefields.