Sluagh (SLoo-ahh)

Snakelike and profane, these kith are the outcasts of the faerie world, the nameless dispossessed whose burrows honeycomb the depths. Even redcaps fear their clammy touch, and with good reason; sluagh, even the Seelie kind, prize their secrecy and do not view strangers kindly. Those intruding on their home ground often leave with nightmares.
Slaugh, of course, enjoy the effects they have on outsiders; there is power and grim humor in another´s disgust. These kith are unsettlingly polite, but boggan rumors hint at secret rituals and wild carnage beneath the earth. Surface changelings call slaugh "underfolk" and speak of them in whispers. Tales claim the kith originated in Russia long ago, as faeries who lived under mountains and in mortal hearths. Now, however, they live out of sight in the cracks of the world, hidden until they choose to visit their cousins for inexplicabe reasons.
On occasion, slaugh will openly visit the surface courts, cultivate friendships and enter into oathbonds with outsiders. This only causes more confusion among topsiders, which may be the sluagh´s sole purpose for doing it. Like the boggans, the underfolk collect dirty secrets and sometimes sell them to interested parties. While some slaugh try to use their knowledge for noble ends, many make a good living through blackmail. Secrets are not their only tender; broken toys, strange knickknacks and vulgar souvenirs are common trade items among the underfolk. The value these kith palce on such things mystifies outsiders, but perversity is, of course, the sluagh´s trademark.
Through it is said that all sluagh follow Unseelie ways, they rarely throw in behind either court, keeping to themselves instead. Among their own kind, these kith are generous and almost painfully formal. They regard each other with deep respect and band togheter against outsiders if needed be. Such teamwork makes trespassers scarce - intruders will be dogged, harassed by voices and shadows just out of sight, showered with...unthinkable things, and finally ambushed if they refuse to get the hint. Sluagh speak in whispers - indeed, they cannot speak any louder. Social interactions irritate them if they´re forced to participate (although they supposedly perform sinister rites in their retreats). Like most fae, sluagh are contrary - any order they are given is likely to be ignored or perverted out of sheer spite. Despite the kith´s reputation, however, the majority of sluagh are neither stupid nor evil. Strange as they are, sluagh often go out of their way to aid or protect an outsider who has been nice to them. These good deeds, however are frequently misinterpreted by suspicious changelings, so such relationships are often brief.
To sluagh, revelation is joy; the more unsettling the revelation, the greater the joy. They seem to use other changelings as social guinea pigs, toying with their expectations and studying their relationships. Perhaps this stems from simple curiosity; then again, such voyeurism may be the revenge of the oppressed, striking back at their "betters" by digging in their dirt. Success is, after all, the sweetest vengance.

Appearance:
Underfolk are pale and grotesque, yet oddly compelling. Some unnamable deformity seems to cling to them like leprosy. Their human seemings can be morbidly attractive, but they lack teeth in their fae forms and have small, tired, mysterious eyes. They carry a vague odor of decay in either guise, a smell that grows more pungent with age. Sluagh favor archaic clothing, usualy black and always intricate.

Seemings:
Childlings resemble drowned rats. Skittish, wildeyed and awkward, they are true street utchins.
Wilder underfolk are pranksters and guardians of hidden places. Slightly shorter than the average human, they have dark, hollow eyes and elongated limbs, fingers and toes.

 - Mark Rein-Hagen