Regarding the Fair Folk

Fairies represent beauty and feminine power, seduction, trickery, homosexuality, mystery, and enigma. Originally the term was the neutral plural of fatum, meaning "the fates" an equivalent of the Greek Moirai, the personified Fates who determined the course and ending of human life. Singularly the word fey, originally meaning "fated to die" or "having forebodings of death." Due to the identical pronunciation of the two words, "fay" is sometimes misspelled "fey". The afterlife and fairy realm are not far removed from one another. The same legends are told of ghosts and fairies, the sídhe of old Celtic lore in actuality being burial mounds. Furthermore it is dangerous to eat food in both Fairyland and Hades, due to the danger of never returning. The Tuatha de Danaan are associated with several otherworld realms including Mag Mell (the Pleasant Plain), Emain Ablach (the Land of Promise), and the Tir na nÓg (the Land of Youth).

Although in modern culture they are often depicted as young, sometimes winged, humanoids of small stature, originally they were depicted as tall, radiant, angelic beings or short, wizened trolls. Fairies of one kind or another have been recorded for centuries. Capable of shape shifting the fairy may be seen in the form of the selkie (a seal); the kelpie (a deadly water horse), or the malevolent black dog. In ancient times, the fairies were mischievous beings and were often believed to be responsible for lost items, sour milk and, at times unwed pregnancy. In addition they could be portents of the death of a loved one, especially if the apparition was a wailing banshee.

Wings, while common in Victorian and later artwork, are rare in folklore; even small fairies flew by magical means, sometimes flying on ragwort stems or on the backs of birds. Nowadays, fairies are often depicted with ordinary insect or butterfly wings. The wings of the fairy can also denote spirituality or alignment within two distinct houses:
The Seelie court is known to seek help from humans, to warn those who have accidentally offended them, and to return human kindness with favors of their own. Still, a fairy belonging to this court will avenge insults and could be prone to mischief.
The Unseelie Court consists of the malevolent fairies. No offense is necessary to bring down their assaults. They are known to assault travelers, carrying them through the air, beating them, and forcing them to commit such acts as self mutilation or suicide. When allowed the opportunity, they will always prefer to harm—rather than to help—humans.
As most accounts of fairy meeting are made by children it is believed that innocence allows perception. But folklore also alleges that those with a second sight, "madness", fringe elements of society, or those who have recently been touched by illness or death are equally prone to such visions. The most common time of day to see them is at twilight. It would appear that it is during transitional times that the veil between worlds is thinnest and most permeable.

Photo: The Captive Robin by John Anster Fitzgerald