By Stacey Lawless
Long before the Shattering, when the trods were still open and the fae controlled the wild places, some of the Kithain moved into human cities to dwell under the very shadow of iron and cross. Some were once nature-fae who were displaced by the encroaching human towns, others may simply have been curious and daring. In any case, these Numina Urbium (as they were collectively known) adapted well to their new environment, and learned to dwell in peace among humanity's works long before it became imperative to do so.
The gemmin are descended from the old Numina Urbium, as are the boggans and nockers. However, while their fellow Kithain became superlative craftsfolk as a result of their association with the mortal world, the gemmin went in another direction, so to speak, and adapted to the urban environment rather than to the humans that populated it. Gemmin legends state that once, a very long time ago, the gemmin-folk lived in trees and rocks, and embodied the memories of the forests. When they moved into the cities the gemmin simply traded their trees for buildings. They went by many names in the old days; perhaps the best-known is the one the Romans gave them: Lares.
When the Shattering happened, the gemmin, like the other Kithain, found that they had to hide their true natures if they wished to survive. Though a handful of gemmin chose to join the ranks of the Inanimae and become forever a part of their beloved cities (and eventually the City Fathers and Mothers of Werewolf lore?), most elected to bond with humans and become changelings.
Among the Kithain, gemmin are best known (and sometimes despised) for two things: they cannot leave their home cities, and the majority of them harbor an affection for humankind. These traits stem from a common source. Gemmin develop a deep, mystic bond with their hometowns (usually the city or town they were born in, but occasionally the one they Sained in) from which they draw their sense of well-being. This bond grants them unusual insights into the city's past (its memories) but prevents them from leaving -- or even wanting to leave. (As the gemmin put it themselves, "Think of us as trees: we grow where we're planted, and we hate being uprooted!") As a result of the bond, gemmin learn to deeply appreciate their homes, and this extends to the mortals they share their homes with. Though most gemmin do not affiliate themselves with the Noble Houses of the sidhe, many of these Kith secretly or openly support House Liam.
Gemmin are typically outgoing, and have well-developed senses of curiosity and adventure. Childlings have been known to break into museums, wilders work high-steel construction jobs by day and bungee-jump off them at night, and you never know who -- or what -- you'll meet if a grump invites you over for "coffee and conversation with some friends of mine". This daring-do leaves them with wild stories to tell, and they get along surprisingly well with their "rootless" Kithain, the eshu. Other fae also find uses for gemmin tales, and they are widely recognized as the best sources for information on the mortal world. Though a gemmin's price for information is seldom as perverse as a sluagh's, it can sometimes be difficult to meet, as gemmin often ask for things that they cannot get themselves. One famous grump in Miami has a freezer full of imported December snow, which he saves for special occasions.
Appearance: Gemmin are thin and wiry, with long fingers and toes and wild shocks of unruly hair. Otherwise they look fairly human, and can be of any race, but their eyes are always large and change color as they age, going from bright blue (the color of innocence) in the young to purple (the color of memory) in the old. As a Kith, gemmin have no particular clothing style or fashion; rather, they wear clothing appropriate to the cities they live in, or to the ethnic groups or subcultures of the area. Some grumps wear anachronistic dress, delighting in the effect such "eccentricity" has on the mortals.
Seemings: Childlings are active and energetic. They are insatiably curious and go out of their way to try new things and avoid adult supervision. Though most are good-natured they are often seen as "discipline problems" and "bad influences" by adults -- a problem, because it seldom occurs to childling gemmin to run away from home.
Wilder gemmin involve themselves in at least one subculture and tend to gravitate toward the nightlife. Both the Seelie and Unseelie ones often run with gangs; both also play the roles of spies and guardians for the courts. Unseelie wilders sometimes offer their services as assassins for hire.
Grumps are frequently well known to their mortal communities, either as public local figures (historians, columnists) or as widely-recognized street people. Many accept positions as bards and scribes to the courts.
Lifestyles: Gemmin make their homes in whatever they can afford, but they like to live in historic buildings or regional types of housing (like shotgun houses in New Orleans or adobes in New Mexico). They work in jobs that put them in touch with the fabric of the city; construction, counseling, street preaching and organized crime are some favorites.
Affinity: Scene
Local Lore: Gemmin have a mystical link to the histories and lore of their hometowns. Each gemmin receeves an automatic dot in Area Knowledge specific to her city. In addition, with the expenditure of a Glamour point and a successful roll of Perception + Enigmas, gemmin can discern hidden facts or obscure city lore of potential use. The difficulty of the roll varies according to the information sought and how easy it is to obtain by mundane means. The name of the mayor who was in office 10 years ago would be a three, while "Who was buried in this unmarked grave eighty years ago?" would be an seven or eight, and "Is there a Methuselah sleeping under the city?" would be a ten.
Wild Heart of the City: Gemmin have been urban fae for far longer than most other Kithain, and have adapted well to life amid Banality. As a result, they have developed a partial resistance to cold iron. Touching cold iron does not discomfort them and they do not suffer the +1 to difficulty numbers for tasks performed while touching cold iron. However, they do suffer all the other problems with iron that plague the Kithain.
The downside to this is that gemmin are feared by other fae as being "too close" to Banality, if not on the verge of being lost to it completely. Though the gemmin protest that this is far from the truth, many freeholds insist on routinely searching them for hidden iron before allowing them inside (coincidentally, a useful precaution against assassins).
Homeward Bound: Gemmin are so deeply tied to their cities that they find it excruciatingly difficult to leave. Going beyond the municipal boundary of their cities makes them uneasy, and going farther than the suburbs is unthinkable. Gemmin do not join wandering motleys, and do not willingly become knights errant, messengers, or ambassadors to other realms. If a gemmin is forced to leave her hometown (it usually takes a geas) her link to the city will be broken (leaving her unable to use the Local Lore birthright). She will be horribly distraught and fall into a deep depression lasting at least a week. At the end of that week, she must make a Willpower roll, difficulty 9, to see if she pulls out of it. If she fails the roll, she must wait another week before she can try again, and so on. While the depression lasts, the gemmin will have +1 to all her difficulty numbers. If she is unlucky enough to botch the Willpower roll, the poor gemmin is so upset that she cannot deal with being uprooted and slips into Coma.
To settle down again, the gemmin must establish a home of some sort in the city she wishes to live in, and spend 5 points of temporary Glamour to establish a link with the new city. Only when she has done this can the gemmin again use her Local Lore birthright, and it will only apply to the new city.
Quote: "Graffiti isn't vandalism, it's Glamour! No, really! C'mon, I know some taggers -- you'll see what I mean. Let's go!"
Boggans: "Damn hard workers, the salt of the earth, and nearly as exciting as a bowl of cold grits."
They have no appreciation of craftsmanship! To them, a bridge is a bridge is a bridge, whether it's the Golden Gate or a plank across the gutter!
Eshu: "I cannot understand the lure the road has for them, but any eshu that comes to town has got a friend in me."
Get one to show you around. They know where all the stories hide.
Nockers: "Nockers will go to obscene lengths to try to get the bugs out of their projects. They worry me -- I swear I saw blood on the walls at Microsoft!"
Idiot street crazies! Windows 95 does work, dammit! Get the hell out of my face before I lose my temper!
Pooka: "Man's best friend, heh heh...No, really, pooks are cool as long as you keep in mind that they'll never be completely straight with you on anything."
I think the gemmin have seen West Side Story a few too many times, but that's ok. I'll forgive them, as long as my team gets to be the Sharks next time.
Redcaps: "Sure bulldogs are rough, but they're loyal and if you stand up for yourself they'll respect you. Some of my best friends are redcaps."
Most are kinda squeamish and can't take a straight-up fight, but they'll stick a knife in you faster'n anything. I'll run with them.
Satyrs: "Wow! Sex, drugs, rock'n'roll, Jung, and Hakim Bey. Where do I sign up?"
These kids squeeze Glamour out of things the rest of us dismiss as urban blight. We could do a lot worse for company.
Sidhe: "Beautiful and noble, but they scare me. Instead of learning from the past they are lost in it, and they may drag us all down with them."
Truly they are a wellspring of knowledge, but are they fae at all?
Sluagh: "They are the other side of our coin. They know things we don't, go places we can't, and are generally frustrating. How can we not like them?"
Gemmin see much, and know much, and trust too much. Iron is their birthright and may be their undoing.
Trolls: "Honorable, but they follow the sidhe's lead in everything and would lock us out of the Dreaming if they could."
They are too immersed in the mortal world, but their vigor may show us a way out of this Winter.