Mag Mell That Ends Well — Page 25
The politics of Fetch’s version of the Otherworld are, like our politics, pretty local. Who rules the Otherworld? Well, it depends on whom you ask. There are several contenders. I like how Irish Central breaks it down by county: Finvarra and Oonagh rule the Connacht region of fairy Ireland, Iubdan runs the Wee Folk in Ulster, etc. But I am not gonna follow that division of realms. As Tara’s speech on this page shows, I have adapted the Seelie Court system of Scottish origin (following Katharine Briggs’ Dictionary of Fairies and other sources), as has some elements of Irish folklore, with its breakdown of regions into seasonal courts with Summer at the top of the hierarchy. Fetch’s Otherworld is a mish-mash of Scottish and Irish elements, reflecting the affinities between the two cultures, and because they are so well defined in the existing folklore and literature. Yet there are more regions beyond that — it is, as Fetch mentioned before, a mythic space: expansive, dynamic, never quite settled, and a bit vague. Which is what makes it so fun to play with for writers.
TARA: Remember the pecking order, Fetch. The Autumn and Winter courts have always been on the bottom. Spring and Summer —
FETCH: Yeah, I know. They’re snobs, we’re scum. So?
PANEL 2: Tara looks at Fetch (off-panel)
TARA: It’s not just attitude. It’s wealth. Spring and Summer are loaded with fairy gold. Their palaces don’t rot. You’ve seen them. They’re not just for show. That’s power.
PANEL 3: Fetch imagines Finvarra and Oonagh
FETCH: C’mon. Finvarra and Oonagh have declined since humans drove the Tuatha de Danann out of Ireland. They sit on a pile of fool’s gold.
PANEL 4: Tara looks intently at Fetch.
TARA: When you left, that was true. They've got real money now. I told you what I do for a living, yeah?
FETCH: Manage a call center.
PANEL 5: Close up on Tara, enthusiastic, talking to Fetch (off-panel)
TARA: Yes. Customer service. Telemarketing. Phone surveys. Our clients outsource the work to us through contracts granted by royal license. That’s real money, Fetch.
PANEL 6: Fetch is dumbstruck, Tara ecstatic
FETCH: What? I thought it was all fairy mischief! High tech torture of hapless humans!
TARA: Oh, it is! For a profit!
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