Fairies

Fairies are mischievous supernatural beings that come in a variety of forms. They can only be seen by those who have been to their realm or if they choose to be seen.

They appeared as the "monster of the week" in the episode "Clap Your Hands If You Believe", wherein it is revealed that they are the cause of UFO sightings, and other "extraterrestrial" encounters. There are many theories about the reason they abduct people - one of them being to bring people to Avalon so they can serve Oberon, King of Faeries. They also appear in the episode "LARP and the Real Girl".

Characteristics
Fairies come in many physiques, and have been described as "magical and mischievous beings from the realm next door". This realm, Avalon, is considered another dimension or reality. Fairies have been classified into two groups - one consisting of light fairies and other of dark ones. However, there have not been many details about identifying fairy classes.

Fairies, despite having different types, have some form of society and justice system, called the Fairy Tribunal. This court decides on the fate of beings that break the presumably existing laws of their kind. This is not limited to fairies, as seen when a fairy named Gilda brought her former human enslaver to face their tribunal. Fairies, despite having different kinds, all seem to cooperate with each other.

They appear to be sensitive to "energy", as one of them made the comment that "fairies are all about energy". In "Clap Your Hands If You Believe", the Leprechaun that appeared was able to know that Sam Winchester had no soul, as it said that human souls have a certain "perfume".

In addition, it seems they also suffer from arithmomania, a mental disorder that may be seen as an expression of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Sufferers of this disorder have the overwhelming impulse to count their actions or objects in their surroundings. Because of this (and regardless of how powerful any fairy may be) it must stop what it is doing to count every grain of sugar or salt, one by one, if someone pours it in front of them.

Humans can interact with them and ask for favors; appeasing them by leaving a bowl of cream. Cream affects faeries in the same way that alcohol affects humans, rendering them intoxicated if they eat it. They claim to possess abilities (which they consider to be "real magic") that surpass those of angels and seem unafraid of them, as inferred by the Leprechaun when he claims to be undaunted by Lucifer. He claims that it is within his power to restore Sam's soul (but not pro bono, of course) a feat beyond the reckoning of both Castiel and the King of Hell. However his claims were never proven, and when fighting Sam Winchester, he proved to be much weaker than even Lower-tier angels.

Faeries can be summoned by spells to make deals with humans, often exchanging their services for a price (i.e. the rights to all of the firstborn sons in an area). Once called upon, a fairy will remain in that area until banished by a spell.

Type of Fairies
In the series, a certain number of types was shown, though it is speculated that there could be more than what was revealed.

Fairy King
Oberon is the king of the Fairies. Not much is known about him except that he is respected throughout Avalon as its leader, and captured humans are sent to service him. His powers and abilities, although presumed to be greater than most, if not all other fairies, remain to be unknown.



Leprechauns
Are powerful all-around, only one has appeared thus far. In typical human form, they look like normal humans, including their size. Little details about them have been revealed, like the few abilities shown that could differ from other fairies: teleportation (being able to move from a place to other in the blink of an eye), enhanced strength, and invisibility (only being seen by those they allow to see them, with the exception of those who have been to their realm). They may be capable of feats even beyond the reach of angels, as a Leprechaun claims to Sam that he is able to retrieve his soul from the cage because they have "a way of getting in back doors", although the validity of this claim is never proven.



Tinks
They are little beings that appear as naked, beautiful women with wings that shine like tinkles. It seems that they can get really angry when someone noted that they are naked, as Dean Winchester did and the Tink began to attack him - though it is possible that it was sent to attack him in the first place. They are extremely quick, and able to fly with the aid of their wings. They're also quite strong, despite their small size, able to knock an adult man around, without any sign of difficulty.



Elves
They appear as little humans about the size of a hand. Not much information was revealed about them. They are very feeble, and possessed powers remain vague.



Redcap
These fairies are dangerously homicidal and are known for mercilessly killing travelers who trespass their territory. Their hats are red because they soak them in the blood of their victims, and, according to lore, Redcaps have to kill regularly because if the blood dries on their hats they will die. The one seen in the episode displayed enhanced strength and the ability to teleport.



'Good' Fairies
More of an alignment than an actual type of fairy, 'good' fairies also appear human-like. Unlike other fairies, they seem more akin to the fairies depicted in classical fairy tales, as they live in the woods of Avalon, are much more benevolent, and dislike harming others. They can, however, be bound and forced to kill by magic. They are quite powerful, although binding them seems easy, as even a very weak magic user can do it.

Tooth Fairy
Not much is known about it although Garth claims to have killed a Tooth Fairy in his first case as a hunter. It is unknown if it is a unique fairy or a class or species. Sam and Dean had a case involving such a fairy, although it is actually a result of reality warping by the imagination of the cambion Jesse, and is thus possibly far from what a real tooth fairy is like.

Fairy Devil
According to Wayne Whittaker the Leprechaun, apparently there is a fairy devil. Its name, gender, and the powers it possesses, is unknown. It is possible it was simply meant as a retort.

Other
It is implied that other types of fairies include: sprites, spriggans, boggarts, brownies, trolls, gnomes and goblins.

Known Abilities
Known to come in "different shapes and sizes", their powers are dependent on the fairy at hand, as certain types hold separate, individual powers.


 * Magic - They're magical, in nature, in how their teleport and use their powers, overall. Apparently being "all about energy".
 * Spell casting - Much like Crossroads demons, some fairies can cast spells to fit deals, notably Leprechauns
 * Shapeshifting - Fairies can appear as humans. Their true form, however, can only be seen by those that have been in the Fairy world, and their true form has been described as little beings covered in bright light that is painful for humans to look at.
 * Invisibility -  All Fairies can make themselves unseen to humans. They can only be seen, if they want to be, or by people who have traveled to their realm and returned. This ability continues to work, even after the fairy in question's death, meaning humans who haven't been to the fairy realm can't see their remains.
 * Telekinesis - Some fairies can move objects with their minds, notably Leprechauns.
 * Teleportation - Like Ghosts, Angels, and Demons, all fairies can appear and disappear at will, Good fairies can also take others with them.
 * Apporting - Good fairies possess this power, Gilda was able to send Gerry to Avalon.
 * Soul Reading - Being based around energy, Fairies can tell if a person has a soul or not, just by looking at them. Notably Leprachauns.
 * Immortality - Fairies are immortal beings.
 * Super Strength - Many types of fairy possess superhuman strength, notably Leprauchans, Tinks and Red Caps.
 * Flight - Tinks can fly.
 * Reality Warping - Powerful fairies, such as Gilda and Leprachauns can manipulate reality, doing things such as manipulating space to imprison a person, or making a person mimic deaths, with no actual stimulus (much like hex bags)

It is speculated that they all have a number of common abilities within them, like magical knowledge (being able to cast magic thanks to their knowledge and nature), invisibility (as they can hide from humans who have not been into the Fairy Realm), enhanced strength, possibly immortality, telekinesis (the ability to move objects with their minds). However, special abilities could also be limited to some kind of fairies, like flying (as tinks have wings that allow them to perform that ability).

Weaknesses
As many other supernatural creatures, fairies have weaknesses that can be used to defeat them. However, none of these methods were proven to be able to completely kill them; the only way to stop them temporarily is banishing them to their realm through a spell. However the above isn't completely true: if a fairy is exposed to a very strong electromagnetic field for enough time they will lose control of themselves and explode, as Dean was able to kill one by trapping the fairy into a microwave oven, however as the fairy in question was very weak, its unknown what affect it would have on a more powerful fairy.
 * Iron - Fairies hate iron as it is proven to be harmful against them (even though it does not kill them).
 * Silver - This can be used against dark fairies--as they burn when they are touched with silver.
 * Items that have multiple grains - If someone pours any substance that has a lot of grain in front of them, they have to stop to count each grain one by one.
 * Radiation - If a Fairy is exposed to intense radiation they will most likely explode, as seen the episode in the episode "Clap Your Hands If You Believe", Dean throws a tink in the microwave and it explodes.
 * Cream - They also love cream, which, like alcohol, intoxicates them.
 * Magic - Fairies can be summoned, bound and banished by magic, once banished they are unable to return, unless summoned again.

Mythology
In Western European folklore, a Fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, whose habitats are woodlands and gardens. Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term fairy offers many definitions. Sometimes the term describes any magical creature, including goblins or gnomes: at other times, the term only describes a specific type of more ethereal creature.

Season 6

 * Clap Your Hands If You Believe

Season 8

 * Southern Comfort (Tooth Fairy, mentioned only)
 * LARP and the Real Girl