"It was certainly foolish, I'll give you that"
"...you mean, brave, right?"
"No. Just foolish"
"But, ah, I had to. I HAD to. I gave them my word, and the king would have- well, you know what becomes of mortals who bargain with him."
"Within the purview of my station, what I know is what becomes of fae who fail to show loyalty."

The two of them stopped, shadowed by a group of silent onlookers. An archway lay before them in the clearing, cracked and choked with moss. Through the arch as one gazed into it, one could see the mortal plane sitting on the other side, a dense forest not too unlike the glade in which the fae were standing, but the forest beyond the veil was harsh, dark, and rough by comparison.

Diawl stared into it. He'd always had a fascination with the place. There was magic in the mortal realm, but it wasn't like it was here. It was baked into the deep and the old and the wild things there.
He'd also always had a soft spot for mortals. He amused himself with them, like other fae, but never stooped to cruelty. He admired their perserverance, even in the harshness of their world.

But that softness for them had now put him at odds with his homeland, to the point of treason.

"Stand by the gateway"

Diawl controlled his breathing and glanced over his shoulder. The crowd gathered behind them bristled and watched every action with suspicion. He stepped forward.

"You have been found guilty of treason against the most gracious royal court. The punishment for this crime is banishment to the mortal plane in perpetuity. Do you have any final remarks?"

The feline fae considered this for a moment, then raised his chin and spoke.

"Mortals are, and their world is, stronger, and more canny than you believe. I think... you should all be a bit more careful what you steal from the mortal plane."

He smirked slightly in defiance.

"...but not half as careful as what you choose to discard inside it, unsupervised."

And with that, he strode through the archway before the sentinel could speak the rest, his wings scattering to ash on the forest floor as he went.

---

Whaaaaat? Diawl has a backstory?

Yes indeed it is true, Diawl is a fae feline, or, was one, once upon a time. Banished from the faerie realm for protecting mortals from the machinations of the faerie king, he now lives as a mortal in exile.

This scene was drawn by the excellent to whom I knew I could rely on an excellent rendering of fae stylised clothing and scenery.