Wizened

The Wizened may well be the most unfortunate of changelings, for the Wizened could be anyone at all. Many were taken for no reason and through no fault of their own, simply finding themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. Unluckier still are those who came to the Others' attention because they encountered one who appeared to be in trouble – like the man who found a little person under a rock and set him free, only to be hounded to death for his presumption that the Fae might need his help. Despite their seeming haplessness, it takes someone as cunning and ingenious as the Fae themselves to escape from the Little People, and so Wizened changelings who return are most often those people who were already nimble of hand and quick of wit. The Wizened bring back disjointed memories of random cruelties, of being the butt of tricks and experiments that seemed hilarious to the Fae, even if they couldn't appeal to any human sense of humor. Many dimly recall trying to escape over and over again, each time being outwitted by their spiteful captors, perhaps at times being allowed to think they had escaped before the fact that they were still in Faerie all along was revealed.


 * Appearance: While every one of the Wizened is, in some way, smaller than she was when she was taken, they bear the features of the "Little People" in all their infinite variety. Being small often means being short — but not always. Some Wizened are tall and impossibly thin. Some aren't physically smaller than anyone else, but somehow seem smaller, as if they are insubstantial or somehow not quite there. Wizened captured in the West often have pointed ears, deeply lined faces, strangely-shaped noses and gimlet eyes. Often, a Wizened changeling's skin is richly colored, being bright green, red or blue, or the deep rich color and texture of polished mahogany. Their fingers are nimble and bony, and their fingernails are long and sometimes twisted. Some have hunch backs and prominent warts. Some have animal feet. Even to those who can't perceive their Seemings, the Wizened still seem small; that look of somehow not always being present stays with them.


 * Contracts: The Wizened gain an affinity with the Artifice Contracts, allowing them to repair, improve, and wreck crafted works.