Geographic Base: England

Appearance: Pixies are 4" tall, thin with ragged shiny wings, pointed ears, upturned noses, and arched eyebrows. They have oversized heads and large eyes of sparkling green. Pixie hair is red and often covered with a hat made from a toadstool top or flower blossom. Otherwise, they wear short tunics dyed with plant juices. They can shape shift, their most common guises being human and hedgehog. As they walk they make a sound of tinkling bells and leave silvery golden footprints behind them that fade with the dew.

Lifestyle: The Pixies are native to England and when European fairy varieties came over with the Romans there were at first vicious wars over territory. However, such disputes are far behind now, and the Pixies have strong ties with the other breeds of fairies dwelling in England. Every spring they are host to Pixie Fairs all over the countryside where all types of tiny magical beings meet to do business, decide government policy, and to engage in traditional toadstool ring dances. While a festive people, Pixies are also dedicated agricultural and horticultural workers, sometimes even helping humans in these fields. They subsist on a diet of flower petals, seeds, and small berries, though they are fond of cream when they can get it. They live in leaf walled tents in the underbrush and specialize in weaving and dying natural fiber cloth. Pixies are also expert metalworkers, particularly in silver, though iron is toxic to them so they never work with it.

Human Interaction: While some Pixies live in isolated woodlands, more and more often they are moving to the back gardens of human houses. With increasing contact with people, the pixies are shedding their historically antagonistic attitude towards mankind. Changeling substitution has all but been eradicated after the Human Protection Act of 1807 and the joy riding of horses has greatly declined. Though they will still often engage in pranks of a harmless sort - pelting with berries or setting pots and pans up to clatter loudly - Pixies are also much more likely nowadays to perform small services for men, picking fruits or helping to maintain pet rabbits. We hope this is the beginning of a much more positive trend in Pixie-Person relations; a break from the old ways of "Pixie-leading" travelers off of the path and using cats to exterminate Pixie homes.