“Darling, please, not again.” Her mother said exasperatedly, her brows furrowing and her shoulders tense. Her tired eyes gazed at her young daughter.

Finch the harpy ignored her and continued to select the best fruits and vegetables, stuffing the ones she liked into her wings. Once satisfied with what she had, Finch turned towards her mother. She looked quite ridiculous with her wings full of food. Was she even strong enough to carry that many, her mother thought in confusion.

“Mother, I bought these on my own,” Finch argued. “I can do what I want with them.”

“Yes, I know that. But what you’re doing is wasting food! I can’t allow you to keep doing that, even though you bought them.”

Finch frowned, feeling offended. “I am not wasting food! I’m giving them to my friend.”

Her mother raised an eyebrow. It was only a few months ago when she figured out what her daughter was doing. Every week, she would use the little money she earned to buy a load of fruits, vegetables, and sometimes even meat. Finch lived alone and the food seemed a bit too much for one harpy. She was utterly shocked when she found out her daughter was throwing all the food she bought into the ocean. Ever since then, she would try and stop Finch, but it was no use.

Before her mother could utter any more words, Finch had managed to stuff her collection of food into a bag. Quite impressive for a tiny creature with wings for hands. Soon after, the harpy gripped the bag with her talons and flew away into the sky, disappearing from view soon after.

The mother could only sigh. Though her daughter was already considered a full-grown harpy, she couldn’t help but worry. Finch was a dreamer and still retained much of her childhood naivety. Her mother could only hope that she knew what she was doing.

 

It took a while, but Finch managed to bring her today’s food to her destination. At the outskirts of the village was a small cave hidden between the shrubbery and trees. It was much too small for the other adult harpies, but for small-framed Finch, the cave was a perfect fit. Slowly inching her way in, careful not to let the rocks scrape her delicate wings, Finch finally reached the other side. The other side of the cave led her to a small beach, wedged between the tall rocks and hills, creating the perfect hidden area.

After leaving the cave, Finch stretched out her wings and once again took flight. As a harpy, she hated walking around and would always use her wings even just to travel small distances. She landed on a slab of rock that stretched passed the beach and into the water, creating a nice spot for her to perch. Carefully, she dumped the contents of the bag and let the fruits and vegetable land at the edge of the rock. Then she waited.

Fortunately, she didn’t have to wait long. A splash of water and a flash of red and gold under the water signaled her arrival.

The mermaid.

Finch didn’t know her name. She’d asked but the mermaid had never told her, but Finch didn’t mind. She was perfectly content with just the mermaid knowing her name, which she never failed to tell her every day. The mermaid made her way onto the edge of the beach, slowly revealing herself as she went from swimming to lounging, her body half above water.

Finch tried her best not to blush as her gaze met the mermaid’s. The beautiful half-woman half-fish had long golden hair that tumbled down to her waist, bright blue eyes, and a red and gold tail. Her skin was pale but tinged with blue, her hands were webbed and there were openings on both sides of her neck. The mermaid’s bright features were very contrast to Finch’s golden-brown skin, dark blue feathers, and black hair.

The mermaid gazed at her and then at the pile of food she left at the edge of the rock. She clicked her tongue and crossed her arms under her chest. “You again?”

Finch smiled at the mermaid, nudging the food closer to her. “I brought different ones this time!”

The mermaid shook her head. “That’s not the really the issue, harpy.”

“It’s Finch.” The harpy pouted. “I told you to call me Finch.”

“No,” The mermaid denied like she always did. “We’re not close. I won’t call you by your name. Mermaids are solitary creatures anyway.”

Finch nodded in response but didn’t agree. Instead, she gave the mermaid another grin, which got a tongue click in response.

“Come eat!”

The mermaid sighed tiredly but reached out to grab a red apple from the pile. Both of them sat there, one sitting leisurely while the other perching while gazing dreamily at the other one. This had been their routine for a while now, though Finch didn’t remember since when. During the middle of every week, the harpy would come to the small hidden beach and present an assortment of food to the mermaid, all in hopes of her finding something she liked. The mermaid would eat, and Finch would perch nearby and gaze at the mermaid in contentment, never taking a bite of the food for herself.

“Will you tell me your name today?” Finch asked hopefully.

Yet, of course, the answer was always the same. “No.”

As always, Finch didn’t mind too much. Though she was curious, she never wanted to force the mermaid. When they get close, surely, she would learn more than just her name. Until that day came, the harpy would happily accompany the mermaid, content with just gazing at her.

 

***

 

“~~~”

The mermaid turned towards the source of the melody.

“~~~”

The harpy was singing today. Her voice wasn’t too loud, but it was nice and the melody was catchy and simple. She was busy peeling the fruits that she brought today, so it seemed like she didn’t even notice what she was doing. The mermaid found herself leaning towards the melody.

“Your singing…”

Finch stopped her singing and suddenly placed her feathers against her lips as if to stop herself. She looked at the mermaid and laughed apologetically. “Sorry, it sounds weird I know.”

The mermaid tilted her head in confusion. Why was it weird? As a mermaid, she was used to hearing all sorts of singing. Seeing the questioning look on her face, Finch continued. “Ah, I’m a harpy, so my voice isn’t the best. Even my friends think it’s weird how much I sing. I’m sure a mermaid like you has heard much nicer singing, right?”

The mermaid thought to herself. It was true that she had heard many kinds of voices, but she had never thought that one sounded better than the other. To a mermaid like her, all sorts of singing were very…beautiful.

“Do you like singing?” The mermaid found herself asking, gazing into the harpy’s dark eyes.

Not used to being studied by the mermaid so intently, Finch felt her cheeks getting hotter and her heart pounding faster. “I-I do!”

“Then sing as much as you like, it’s…” beautiful. “pleasant. You needn’t worry.”

With a big grin on her face, Finch continued to clean and peel the fruits in her hands. This time, her voice was more confident, prouder, and unashamed. The mermaid too leaned back to gaze at the blue sky, content with listening.

“It’s Meia.” She muttered. “My name is Meia.”

The harpy did not respond, but Meia felt her singing becoming happier, brighter, and even more melodic to her ears.

***

Where was Meia?

Finch flew around her usual perching rock, but then quickly settled back down when she couldn’t spot the mermaid. She’d arrived at the regular time, but she remained on the beach alone for quite a bit of time, her usual company missing.

The waves today were a little rough. The usual calm shore was faced with a strong wing that made the waves crash onto the beach and rocks in an intimidating way for a sky creature like Finch.

But…

She glanced out into the open sea. What if Meia got lost somewhere because of the turbulent waves, or worse, what if she got injured because she got pushed around by the waves?

Concern at an all-time high now, Finch left the food behind where the waves won’t touch them and started circling the waters. She hovered close to the surface, eyes wide open in search for that flash of red and gold.

Then it happened. Amid her panic and uncertainty, the harpy flew too low, too close to the water's surface. The turbulent waves that she was so worried about suddenly crashed into her. Shocked by the impact of cold water on her body, Finch’s wings stopped their movement, sending the harpy into the cold sea. She tried her best to get back up, but the water weighed her body down, pulling her deeper and deeper.

There was a reason why the harpies lived deep in forests and high above the ground. Sometimes, when you flew too close to the ground, you can never return to the sky.

 

“Come on, harpy.” A voice. Angry, anguished, concerned. “Open your eyes!”

Finch opened her eyes and launched into a sitting position, her mouth opening wide to take in the breath she lost when she found herself in the cold sea. After coughing up the water she inhaled, Finch found herself starting to feel better until she was almost good as new.

Taking a breath of relief, she turned towards Meia. It seemed like the mermaid had rescued her and brought her back to shore. Finch felt guilty. Carrying a harpy with heavy feathers from the water couldn’t have been easy.

Before she could utter any sort of apology, she felt the weight of the mermaid’s damp and cold body on her own. Finch couldn’t see her expression, but Meia threw her arms around her waist, placing her head on the feathered chest. Finch could feel her body tremble.

“You’re a fool, Finch the harpy.” Even though she was being insulted, Finch couldn’t help but smile and feel giddy when she heard her name being called. “What if I’d left for good? You would’ve been searching for nothing. What no one came and you would’ve…”

 

 

The words trailed off but Finch could guess what she meant. Still, she couldn’t muster any sort of dread about almost dying. Yes, it had been scary and she would’ve preferred not dying so young, but…

“You wouldn’t leave,” Finch said confidently. Slowly she also wrapped her wings around the mermaid. A warm smile decorated her lovely face. “I believe you wouldn’t do that without saying goodbye.”

Silence stretched between them for a little while, but it didn’t feel awkward. It felt very nice, warm, and comfortable. After basking in the embrace, Meia lifted her face.

“Can I kiss you?” She asked, which left Finch so speechless that she could only nod.

Slowly she felt Meia brushing her cold lips against Finch’s. The harpy couldn’t help but freeze, her heart beating faster and faster while her brain failed to keep up. She could feel her face heating up so intensely, she was sure that she was blushing harder than she’d ever had.

But, of course, above all else, she couldn’t push down the happiness that warmed her heart.

“You’re a fool, Finch the harpy,” Meia said once more, this time her tone was light and her lips smiling. Finch couldn’t help but smile as well. “But I suppose you’re my fool.”