Jedi's blog: "Mythology"

The Scholomance was a legendary school of black magic said to have been run by the Devil. It was supposedly located near an unnamed lake in the mountains south of the city of Hermannstadt (called Sibiu in Romanian) in the Transylvania region of Romania. In folklore Emily Gerard, a Scottish author married to a Hungarian cavalryman stationed in Romania, gave a detailed description in her article "Transylvanian Superstitions" on page 136 of The Nineteenth Century: As I am on the subject of thunderstorms, I may as well here mention the Scholomance, or school supposed to exist somewhere in the heart of the mountains, and where all the secrets of nature, the language of animals, and all imaginable magic spells and charms are taught by the devil in person. Only ten scholars are admitted at a time, and when the course of learning has expired and nine of them are released to return to their homes, the tenth scholar is detained by the devil as payment, and mounted upon an Ismeju (dragon) he becomes henceforward the devil's aide-de-camp, and assists him in 'making the weather,' that is, in preparing thunderbolts. A small lake, immeasurably deep, lying high up among the mountains south of Hermanstadt, is supposed to be the cauldron where is brewed the thunder, and in fair weather the dragon sleeps beneath the waters. Katherine Ramsland describes the nine remaining scholars (known as Solomonari) as "tall, redheaded men clad in white wool...[possessing] several instruments of magic and a book of instruction." She also goes on to explain that they are "trained for nine years...overcoming obstacles and surviving ordeals. Their final examination involved copying all that they knew about humanity into the Solomonar's book. In literature Bram Stoker, likely drawing from Gerard's work, referred to it twice in Dracula, once in chapter 18: The Draculas were, says Arminius, a great and noble race, though now and again were scions who were held by their coevals to have had dealings with the Evil One. They learned his secrets in the Scholomance, amongst the mountains over Lake Hermanstadt, where the devil claims the tenth scholar as his due. And again in chapter 23: He dared even to attend the Scholomance, and there was no branch of knowledge of his time that he did not essay. Stoker's reference to "Lake Hermanstadt" appears to be a misinterpretation of Gerard's passage, as there is no body of water by that name. In the book "Lord of Middle Air" by Michael Scott Rohan, the wizard Michael Scot reveals that he dared to train at the Scholomance on TWO separate occasions, as there was so much knowledge it could not all be learnt in one night. In computer games The name has been reused in the computer game industry to refer to other schools of dark magic. The warlocks in Bungie's Myth II: Soulblighter are described as having been trained at a school of magic named the Scholomance, and in Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft, the Scholomance is a series of crypts that has been corrupted and is now used to train necromancers and create undead monsters. Additionally, the Scholomance in World of Warcraft is located in the middle of a lake, like its legendary namesake.

Cat Sidhe or Cait Sith (Pronounced caught shee)is a fairy creature from Celtic mythology said to resemble a large black cat with a white spot on it's breast. It is said to haunt the Scottish Highlands. Some common folklore suggested that the Cait Sidhe was not a fairy, but a transformed witch. The myths surrounding this creature are more common in Scottish Folklore, but a few myths originate in Irish folklore as well. The name comes from the root words "Cait" which means "Cat" in both Irish and Scottish Gaelic and "Sidhe" which is the word for faery folk or other otherworldly beings. It is possible that the legends of the Cait Sidhe were inspired by Kellas Cats, which are probably a hybrid between European Wildcats and domestic cats only found in Scotland (the European Wildcat is absent from elsewhere in the British Isles). Typically, Kellas Cats resemble large black wildcats, but with some features closer to domestic cats, and have probably been present in Scotland for centuries, maybe even some 2 millennia or more. In the Highlands, it was believed to be unlucky for a cat to pass over a corpse, because they believed it was a Cait Sidhe coming to steal the soul before it was claimed by the Gods. They believed the soul stayed close to the body after death until it can cross over, so it must be watched closely day and night until it can be buried. All sorts of tricks were attempted to keep the Cait Sidhe away, including leaping and wrestling, and placing catnip all over the house (except for the room in which the body rested) to distract it. Riddles were asked, but never answered, because they knew the Cait Sidhe would stop to answer the puzzles, and music was played so the Cait Sidhe would stop to dance. Fires near the body were put out, because any warmth would attract cats, and possibly a Cait Sidhe as well. On Samhain, (All Hallow's Eve) a saucer of milk was set outside the house for them, so the Cait Sidhe would bring blessings in return for the gifts. If you failed to place the offering, they would curse you by causing your cows to stop producing milk. Many forms of media portray the Cait Sidhe in one form or another, including one of the most notable ones being a character in the game Final Fantasy VII. In the game, Cait Sidhe rides a large robotic moogle. In the animated film Final Fantasy: Advent Children, the moogle is nowhere to be seen, and Cait Sidhe talks with a thick Scottish accent.