Thread: Hexenringe WHO: Jack Cavanaugh & OPEN to the field-trip students WHEN: 21st March 2014 [Forward Posted], around midnight WHERE: At the Fairy Circle
It was a a large, crooked mushroom, the colour of a corpse. Jack was always impressed by how big they were in this particular circle. Normally, you could flatten these things with your feet, but some of these had grown so big, Jack could barely fit his hand around the stem. And it wasn't even mushroom season. Jack had stopped, and asked the class: "Does anybody know what kind of mushroom this is?"
A student shouted out 'Monk's Head'. Jack shook his head. "No, this is the Chlorophyllum molybdites or the False Parasol, but it looks a bit like a Monk's Head. This one you can't eat, though. It'll upset your insides big time, and I'm betting these ones have a lot more... unexpected side effects."
Around them, the woods seemed quiet, except for the occasional frog croak. He motioned for the students to follow as he began walking, following the outline of the circle. Jack took care not to step inside or uproot the mushrooms. In the bus, he'd warned his students not to touch the mushrooms or step into the fairy circle. "Fairy rings are called differently in most European countries. Hexenringe, ronds de sorciers, cylch y Tylwyth Teg... Even their origins vary. In the Netherlands they are caused by the devil, in Tyrol by dragons, but the most common belief is that these circles are caused by the dancing of fairies, elves or witches."
All of them had been equipped with flashlights. Jack shone his into the circle. The light wasn't obviously distorted, but it looked odd once it passed the borders of the circle: brighter, more powerful. "It makes sense to believe that. This is a place of power. Fairies love these rings, since they enhance magic. The same goes for witches, but remember, these things aren't safe for the human mind. They can drive you insane, expand your mind beyond the limits of your imagination. That's their appeal, and their danger."
He stopped, grinning at his class as he used his flashlight to illuminate his face from below. "Fae are immune, but in humans, these things can cause hallucinations and insanity. They can honestly believe that they are unable to leave the ring, or that they ought to keep dancing and dancing and dancing... Some people genuinely disappear. Never enter a fairy ring, and if you do, carry iron and don't enter it when you're all alone. Even though you might really, really want to." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Because you will want to. Can't you hear it whispering?"