AI Summary
5 min readIn Newfoundland, a folklore student set out to collect stories about fairies—the mischievous, malevolent creatures of local tradition—and ended up becoming a story himself. What began as an academic assignment turned into a terrifying encounter that left him hospitalized with wounds that would not stop producing splinters, bark, and insects. His account, told in the first person, weaves together the old tales he gathered and the price he paid for treating them as mere curiosities.
The Assignment and the Stories
The narrator was a folklore major at Memorial University, given the task of interviewing people about a topic of his choosing. He chose the fairy lore of Newfoundland, a province rich in supernatural tradition. At the university's folklore archive, he listened to recordings of people describing encounters: lights in the forest, strange music on the wind, and the "wee people" who could harm or abduct the unwary. He traveled to his rural hometown, a place over 400 years old, to conduct interviews with older residents.
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What you'll learn
- 1 (02:32) **Host Introduces the Folklore Assignment** - The host explains his academic background in folklore at Memorial University and his assignment to interview people about Newfoundland fairy lore.
- 2 (03:23) **Gathering Fairy Stories from Locals** - The host interviews older residents in his rural hometown, collecting tales of encounters with the fairies.
- 3 (04:34) **The Grandfather's Reluctant Tale** - The host's grandfather agrees to tell his story but becomes visibly distressed, revealing a traumatic encounter from his youth.
- 4 (08:07) **Aftermath of the Grandfather's Story** - The host feels terrible for upsetting his grandfather but is consumed by curiosity about the trail.
- 5 (09:12) **Entering the Forbidden Trail** - Overcome by curiosity, the host breaks his promise to his grandfather and walks the path.
- 6 (11:34) **Sensing a Presence** - The host's initial disappointment turns to wariness as he feels watched.
- 7 (12:28) **The Three Fairy Kings Appear** - The host witnesses three terrifying fairy entities: the King of Trees, the King of Bone, and the King of Rot.
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Show Notes
Fairies are real, I've seen them. I hope you never do
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