The pixie is a creature well known to almost all of us, featuring heavily in many of our most famous childhood stories. So common are they in so called “fairy tales” that their species is sometimes erroneously referred to simply as “fairies”. Physically, they are among the smallest of fay, ranging in size from six to nine inches, with the occasional outlier sometimes growing as tall as a whole foot (although pixies that large tend to be fairly poor fliers). In appearance they are quite humanlike despite their miniscule size, with lithe figures and a certain roundness to their features that makes them appear almost slightly childlike. Their most outstanding feature, not counting their height, is without a doubt their vibrant colours and their large, beautiful butterfly-like wings. Pixies can have almost any colour, both in skin tone and hair, but it is always bright and vibrant. The patterns on their wings are also very varied, and it is believed no two pixies have exactly the same wing patterns. It should be noted that while the skin and hair of pixies can be any bright colour, their eyes are universally a warm brown. Despite their butterfly-like wings, the idea that pixies have antennae on their heads is pure myth. They do have rather thin, pointed ears, but those are rarely visible since all pixies have long, wild, curly hair. Culturally, pixies tend towards the playful and the hedonistic, even in comparison to other fay. They are completely enamoured with singing and dancing, being among the most musical of all fay, and often hold wild, night-long festivals that fill the air with high-pitched song and laughter. They are also very fond of the pleasures of the flesh, be they in the form of food and drink or more passionate matters. Standards of clothing vary wildly among pixies. Some colonies let their love for beauty and decoration run wild, resulting in their members wearing some of the most elaborate garb imaginable and decking themselves with lavish jewellery. Other colonies eschew clothing entirely, choosing to fly about completely nude for reasons I will tactfully refuse to elaborate upon. Pixies are also stricken with an incredible sense of discovery and exploration, and are often fascinated by humans and their lives and habits. For this reason, a great many pixies have left the fairy realms for good, and now thousands if not tens of thousands of pixie colonies exist throughout our world, often situated in wooded areas close to human communities. Due to the peculiar lifestyle of the pixies, pixie communities tend to grow rather quickly, and can sometimes double their number in less than sixty years. The only thing keeping these communities from becoming huge and sprawling is the tendency of young pixies to leave their homes behind to go exploring. When dealing with humans, pixies delight in various mean-spirited (if ultimately harmless) pranks, and a traveller unfortunate enough to stumble upon a colony will often find themselves struggling through various minor misfortunes (most commonly courtesy of the pixies' skill with illusion and transmutation magic) while the pixies point and laugh. However, they are ultimately rather good sports about the whole matter, and anyone who manages to beat them at their own game can often become fast friends with an entire colony. Pixies also delight in riddles and games, so challenging them to such a contest is often a handy way of getting them to halt their pranks. Also note that pixies have an amazing tolerance for alcohol, and if you are ever offered to sample anything they have brewed it is safest to decline. Pixie spirits tend to burn the throat like fire and hit your brain like a sledgehammer. While physically similar, it is of utmost importance that you do not mistake a boggan for a pixie. The difference can be seen in that boggans have wings more like those of a dragonfly than those of a butterfly, and their moist, clammy skin tends to be a dull, mottled brown, green or grey in colour. They also sport vicious fangs and claws and slight webbing between the fingers and toes. Most disturbingly, their eyes bulge weirdly and sport a misshapen, almost rectangular pupil. Unlike pixies, boggans lack any real intelligence and can neither speak nor comprehend speech. They do communicate amongst themselves in peculiar croaks and chitters, but there is no evidence that this is any more a language than most animal noises. Boggans are also highly aggressive towards humans, attacking them on sight with tooth and claw. For this reason, anyone misfortunate enough to spot a boggan colony should flee at once and report the sight to their local lawmen so a proper exterminator can be sent for. The bite of a boggan is mildly venomous, and will cause some slight inflammation accompanied by a constant itching and a dull, throbbing pain. The symptoms usually fade after a day or two, but care should be taken to protect sensitive areas like the eyes and throat where the venom and the swelling it causes could cause further health issues. It should also be noted that while boggans are only mildly venomous, they are incredibly poisonous to most if not all living things, and I have heard more than one story of a dog snapping at a boggan attacking its master only to fall down dead minutes later, poisoned by the blood of the boggan. While it is currently unknown just how boggans come to be, the popular notion is that they are the offspring of a particularly unfortunate pixie and an overly amorous toad. I have seen no proof either for or against this theory (and the pixies certainly won’t tell), but I have managed to discern that boggans cannot successfully breed among themselves, seeing how boggan colonies spring up out of nowhere about 40 strong and then only shrink in size until they are wiped out, no matter how long they remain undisturbed. The fact that boggan colonies are found almost exclusively in bogs and marches might lend some credence to the toad theory, but it might also simply be a sign that the boggans prefer to settle in such areas.