I shall speak of my own "species" of Fae. There are as many different sorts of us as there are races and ethnic backgrounds of Human. However, as I am not Elenari, Wyldefae, or Dragon, I will not presume to speak of these races. My own expertise is reserved for the Leanan Sidhe.

For those versed in mythology, the Leanan Sidhe is a singular entity. On the Isle of Man, she is a blood-sucking vampire (didn't I mention vampires were Otherkin?) in other parts of the Celtic empire she is an inspiration to artists, akin to the Muses of Greece. However, my own searching leads me to believe that neither of these descriptions is entirely correct and yet both are true. Allow me to elaborate...

The Leanan Sidhe seem to be primarily female. Male Fae may be Sidhe but I have yet to meet a male claiming to be Leanan (that doesn't mean they aren't out there though.) As a Leanan Sidhe, I need to "feed" on pranic (life) energy. If I do not, I experience many of the same detrimental side effects as a starving vampire (damn, there's that nasty word again), including but not limited to: fatigue, acute photosensitivity, depression, mood swings, lowered sex drive, and general malaise.

I am capable of feeding in several ways. The first, is by tapping into the Source, the primordial life force of the Universe. This energy is found in sunlight, running water, trees, rocks, and all manner of natural things. It is prana at its purest and most raw. Then there is the sort of prana which I can glean from the psychic ambient of any given group. For instance, in a dance club, the people who are dancing and having a good time, all contribute their energies to the collective ambient. I can then take the energy "out of the air" so to speak. With this method, I am not draining any one individual and there is an implied consent from the group for me to consume their prana. However, while I will not starve by using prana gained by either of these methods, surviving solely on these energies is like living on a diet of soup. Tasty at times, certainly nourishing, but not particularly satisfying. The method of feeding which I prefer is from a single individual. I will try to explain how I do this but it is not entirely clear, even to me.

To begin, I must find a willing donor. Contrary to the horror stories one hears about vampires, the psychic variety in particular, I do not mind-rape, manipulate, or feed from an unwilling source. Granted there may be those who practice such parasitism but in my opinion it is both unnecessary and unhealthy. I certainly do not condone it. All of my donors are willing participants. My current donor actually enjoys it. Once I have obtained consent, I proceed by sending out a small amount of my personal energy to my donor. This inspires him/her to engage in some sort of creative activity which may take shape as art, music, dance, written word, or even sexual activity. During the creative process, the donor manifests an enormous amount of prana. I simply drain off the excess for my own purposes. My current donor has noted that he feels happier, more energetic, and gets more out of his writing after a feeding session.

Why I prefer a human (or Otherkin) donor, I cannot say. There is something special about the prana from an individual that is more satisfying than the nebulous ambient or even raw from the Source. My donor acts as a filter, and prana drawn through him has a different "flavor" to it. I am uncertain if it is endorphins that I crave, or if I simply enjoy the taste of his soul that I am privileged to get. Whatever it is, I am drawn closer to my donors that to anyone else and usually develop long-lasting relationships with them, even after I cease to feed from them.

Author's Note: Since the original publication of this article, I have learned that one of my male friends is also Leanan Sidhe. To date, he is the only other reasonably sane individual I know of who identifies as Leanan. It seems that we are rare even among the Otherkin and Otherwonder communities.