Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25375217-20170501210921

Just a theory I made to explain some confusion related to 619.

We all know that there are at least two different kinds of fairy: dust collectors (like Nova) and fairy godmothers (like Tiger Lily, Fairy Godmother, and Blue), the latter of which appearing to be a higher "rank" since Nova wants to someday become one. But these two roles don't seem to describe every fairy; Tinker Bell did not seem to have any particular job and also was not called by her real name while Silvermist is in a completely different realm ferrying folks across bodies of water.

I suspect that fairies run on Belief - more specifically, the kind of Belief wielded by Henry and the Dragon that allows them to use magic in a Land Without, not necessarily the kind of Belief that overflows throughout Neverland (if there's a difference). Alternatively, the term Trust could be switched in (which also matches the Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust thing from Peter Pan). Going with the Tinker Bell tale, fairies are born from the innocent Belief inherent in a newborn child and expressed in their first laugh (not necessarily every first laugh, which is why we've never seen a fairy born from Neal, Robin, etc.) Alternatively, an incantation requiring strong Belief can turn humans into fairies (this much Belief is rare, though first-time mothers desperate to protect their child seem to have it). When they run out of Belief, they turn into humans (or some other non-winged humanoid I suppose). Once they've gathered enough Belief from their superiors and/or others, they can be promoted. The ranks would be:

Just some minor worldbuilding I felt like doing. What do you think? Does this seem like a reasonable system for the fairies? 
 * Elvin Fairy - The lowest rank of fairy or a newborn fairy. With very little Belief, they are only trusted with small jobs and are not allowed to grow large in the presence of humans. They are not usually named and instead referred to by their color. This is Tinker Bell's role. (Named for the elves of The Elves and the Shoemaker, famous for performing good deeds without being seen.)
 * Helper Fairy - With just a little extra Belief, fairies are given permission to grow big in the presence of humans, allowing them to perform larger jobs such as ferrying humans across lakes and therefore gain Belief at a higher rate. This is Silvermist's role. (Not sure if they are called by name. Silvermist is, but she also fell in love which is against the rules, so since she's in a different realm from Blue, she may just be a rebel.)
 * Dust-Collecting Fairies - Once fairies have gathered enough Belief, they are trusted to do a very important job: transporting Fairy Dust. As they now directly serve their fellow fairies, who are known for having particularly strong Belief, they once again gain the precious power at a higher rate. However, due to Blue being much harder to please than past fairy leaders, many fairies get stuck at this rank. Fairies start going by their name at this rank, though some fairies, such as Blue herself, choose to stick to their colors for personal reasons. This is Nova's role.
 * Possibly other ranks - It seems like there would be something between Dust-Collecting and Fairy Godmother. But there's been no sign of any, so I couldn't begin to guess what they may be.
 * Fairy Godmothers - A fairy with remarkably high amounts of Belief are trusted with the most important job of all: the protection of children. Every child has a Fairy Godmother, but not every Fairy Godmother chooses to lend a helping hand. Fairy Godmothers decide when their charge needs their help on their own, meaning they may assist with anything from tasks as mundane as making a gown to tasks as large as protection from death or raising the child to protect them. This is Tiger Lily and the Fairy Godmother's role.
 * Fairy Leader - The fairy with the most Belief is tasked with enforcing the laws of the fairies and protect all of her underlings. The Blue Fairy is the only known Fairy Leader, though there were likely others in the past. A replacement Fairy Leader is chosen by the current Fairy Leader (unless the current Fairy Leader was killed, in which case other methods are implemented). The Fairy Leader may also act as a Fairy Godmother. The Fairy Leader uses a special wand which can open portals to other realms; however, this wand takes a lot of Belief to use, so they usually use a typical Fairy Wand for smaller acts.