Demesne

A Demesne is the basic unit of geography in Faerie, and is basically a region that obeys the same laws of physics, and for lack of a better word, has the same 'theme' or 'mood'. A demesne may be as small as a hotel room, or as large as an American State or Canadian Province.  While a demesne is internally consistent with its own laws, those laws are not necessarily static.  Some demesne remain completely unchanged for millennia, others seem change every five minutes or at unpredictable intervals.  Because of this unpredictability, denizens of Faerie use Demesne Hearthstone to stabilize any area that is settled or that they wish to settle.  That way, the residents won't go to sleep in a tropical rainforest, and wake up, shortly before freezing to death, in an arctic wasteland. 

Demesne are separated in Faerie by the Mists, so called because the mist is so thick that ones field of vision is usually limited to a few feet, or less, from one's eyes.

It is difficult to define exactly what a demesne is, because each one is different then the last, as the following examples will illustrate. 

• There is a small demesne known to both the Seelie and Unseelie Courts to be quite dangerous, and they warn any who journey outside the Hearthstone controlled Demesnes to avoid it.  It appears as a wall of stone in the mists between Demesnes,  with a small cave entrance.  There is tall, sweet smelling grass surrounding the entrance, and cave if entered is small, but clean and dry, and with a soft, sandy floor. On the surface, an ideal place to make camp.  The problems is, that according to the rules of that Demesne, when you sleep, your body feels the effects of whatever you dream in the physical world, and that you will dream of great danger.  Many Fae have died or been permanently crippled because they didn't realize the danger they were in.
 
• There is demesne which consists of a single large lake, where creatures that can breathe air everywhere else are able to breathe water, while the moon shines upon the lake. The Mists extend right up to the edge of the water.  It has remained this way for several centuries, but younger generations of Sidhe challenge each other to spend time at the bottom of the lake as a test of bravery and martial skill, for the lake is deep enough to have some rather... interesting...denizens, and while they can breathe the water, swinging a weapon underwater has its own challenges.
 
• Many demesne appear to be clearings in a misty forest.  However, if you find yourself in one with a small cottage with ivy covering the roof and shutters, be wary, and do not enter.  Those who have found such a clearing only return to tell of it if they do not enter, and many have tales of finding such a cottage, and companions who disappeared into it, never to be seen again.
 
• One Demesne is a cave where gravity runs backwards. Crossing the boundary of that demesne, in either direction, without injury can be tricky.
 
• An island of toffee sits in the middle of a lake of maple syrup.  Any who might be tempted to try and harvest some, however, should wonder why there are no insects around, or anything else living for that matter.  The volcano at the center of the island regularly erupts coating the island with more molten liquid toffee and powdered sugar ash.