I love learning about fae lore but knowing how sophisticated and beautiful their society actually is makes me *so freaking angry* at the humans that just call them terrible beasts
humans look at fae and see sharp, taloned feet and dangerous hands that look like they cannot be used for anything but war; they see the advantage fae have of being able to both attack from the sky and escape back to it; they see teeth that rip and tear and eyes that are inhuman. humans watch their sheep and goats disappear, and every village near the mountains has a tale of a child who played too close to the hills or forsook their bed to follow the treacherous glint of crystal.
humans hear fae’s trills and chirps, the twining of word and song in one throat, and fear it. they hear the thrall cast over their fellows and feel its dangerous, inexorable pull. they hear the odd grammar and the way fae do not count, see the way they do not write, and they call them lesser for it.
some humans look at the light glinting between the mountain passes and know that just over them, lucrative trade opportunities are waiting. they watch the darting silhouettes circling their peaks and they resent the lost growth that their towns could benefit from.
some humans look at the fae and watch the way their heads tilt to the stars, the way they listen for something beyond human ken, watch something twine in the air and through the notes of bells and chimes. some humans see that fae have something that lights those sharp, predatory eyes with awe, and they simmer with hatred for that which they cannot have.
humans don’t see the rituals the fae offer to the stars. they don’t see the nights when the stars reach down to meet their children. they don’t see the councils who lead their courts. they don’t see fae parents teaching their fledglings to fly, to hunt, to sing to the stars. they don’t hear the liquid, bright way fae speak with each other, the way meaning flows not just through words but chirps and trills and body language. they don’t see those sharp talons being used to lovingly, carefully set each feather in place when they groom each others’ wings. there’s a lot that they don’t see..... but they’re not really looking, either. “beast” is easier.
