Jane

At sunset, I glided through the air. I loved the feeling of the air flowing past my feathers. There was nothing like it. I flew until the sun had almost completely disappeared on the horizon. When I flew back home, to the nest of my parents (who hopefully weren't busy with harpy production at the moment), I saw two falcons sitting in a tree. Their plumage was unusually bright. They were two very pretty birds. We rarely saw falcons in our mountains. With a smile, I flew past them.

Luckily for me, my parents were already asleep. Presumably, they had exhausted themselves athletically, because normally they were still awake at this time. I crept to my bed of moss and sank into a satisfied sleep a little later.

My satisfied sleep was abruptly interrupted the next morning when leader Harper and shaman Hailey stormed into the nest of my parents, who were ... not presentable. They kissed deeply and my mother had her long bird legs wrapped around my father. Annoyed, I hid under my wings and carefully squinted through a few of my feathers to Harper and Hailey.

My parents blinked in surprise. I had been able to sleep through this? And... Hello? Couldn't they have waited until I was awake and on my way?  But my parents always said that love doesn't want to wait.

"Harper? Hailey!" My mother climbed off my father's lap and smoothed out her tunic. "Did something happen?"

"Certainly!" Leader Harper looked angry. "I need to talk to your daughter..."

"With Jane? Why?" My father looked at me confused. "Did you do something?"

"No?", I replied quietly. Had I done something? I didn't know about anything.

"The First is gone." Hailey looked at me skeptically. "Surely that wasn't you? And your friends?"

"What?" Now I sat up. "Certainly not. And what does gone mean?"

"The statue is gone", Harper said. "So if you want to tell us something?"

"She just said she wasn't it!", my father snorted. "She was here all night. Almina and I were awake sometimes. She slept in her bed."

"Could it have been your friends?", asked Harper, but Hailey cleared her throat in embarrassment.

"They weren't this", she murmured.

"Not? Are you sure? The three of them are always making mischief!", muttered Harper.

"I caught them. With your son and two other young harpies. They were... busy. Very busy."

"Oh. My boy? Again? With this troublemaker? And the second troublemaker? I will have to keep a word with this boy about his choice of partners... So, Jane?" Harper looked at me warningly. "I really hope you don't lie to me!"

"She isn't!", my father repeated, standing in front of me. "Maybe you'll go now and find the real culprit? Instead of blaming our wonderful daughter?"

Hailey sighed. "I ask the First. She can tell us for sure who took the statue. Then we know whether it was our dear Jane or not. Hennes? Your daughter may have been out when you and your partner were sleeping." Then she looked at me. "Jane? Tinke is certainly waiting for your visit. Don't disappoint her."

After the two had left, and my still-outraged parents and I had successfully hunted and eaten our breakfast, I made my way to Tinke. On the way, I met Rosalie. My best friend yawned tiredly. In one hand she held a cup of herbal tea.

"Long night? I've heard about your and Falk's little party", I teased. "I thought you didn't want to do it with Falk, you know."

Rosalie yawned. "I didn't."

"But shaman Hailey saw you", I told her. "Both of you and other harpies."

"Exactly. More harpies. I was together with a man of a harpy. You should have seen his tail feathers. So masculine!" She sighed dreamily. "Falk was busy with the other two."

„Oh.“

"Are you on your way to Tinke? The swarm is in turmoil. Apparently, the statue was stolen. But no one knows who did it !"

"Harper and Hailey suspect me. But I wasn't it. I'll fly on. See you?", I asked.

"Of course!"

It wasn't far to Tinke. When I arrived, a few of her siblings were flying away. Tinke sat in her bed like the day before and looked at me out of tired eyes.

"Hi, Jane. There you are."

"Hey!" I sat down next to her. "How are you?"

"As always. And you?" She tilted her head and blinked. Otherwise, her face remained expressionless.

"Not as always. The statue of the First was stolen and I am suspected. The shaman wants to ask the First. I wasn't it."

Tinke braced herself with her arms and moved a little closer to me. Then, somewhat awkwardly, she put her arm around me. I looked at her in surprise.

"Are you feeling better now?", she wanted to know.

"Yes, I think so."  I put a wing around her and finally, a small smile appeared on her face.

"It must be nice to be able to use your own wings", she murmured.

"It is."

„Hm.“

We talked for a while until Tinke's parents Neo and Miriel came in. The two were best friends, even if they mostly behaved like steady partners. Only Tinke's many half-siblings made it clear that the two were not.

"Shaman Hailey knows who stole the statue!", said Neo angrily, ruffling his hair. "White dragons!"

I remembered the two falcons I had seen. Dragons could take the form of other creatures and the two birds had bright feathers. Maybe they weren't falcons?

"Harper is looking for harpies willing to join him in bringing the dragons to justice!" Miriel looked at me. "Would that be something for you, Jane? You are already sixteen. Your parents are flying along. Me and Neo too."

I looked briefly at Tinke. She returned my gaze. I made a decision. "No. I'll stay here a little longer and keep Tinke company."

"Good. Thank you very much!", said Tinke's mother, and the two flew away.

"Jane?" Tinke tugged at one of my feathers.

"Yes?"

"Thank you. I don't like being alone. You're a good friend, even if you didn't choose it. I'm glad you're here." She stroked my gray feathers. "You know? Sometimes I dream of spreading my wings and taking off. I never like to wake up from those dreams."

"I can imagine that." I didn't want to live a life where I wouldn't be able to enjoy the skies and fly with the birds. And to confuse their swarms. "Maybe I can take you with me someday?"

"No. You wouldn't see anything. That's why my parents don't fly with me anymore. My wings are in the way. They flutter uncontrollably in the air and hinder the person carrying me. But thank you. Do you know this? Jane? I like you very much. Please remain my friend." She looked at me with big, pleading eyes.

"Of course." I blushed slightly. She was so pretty.

WOLF - A story about friendship, love, and a life in fear.