Chapter Text
The sun hadn’t peaked its head out in months which really bothered a being who was named after it. As a young harpy, Sun always loved lying in the sunny spots of the forest. When he was distracted by a hummingbird, he wandered off into the forest, away from his mother as she tended to his younger siblings. Unnoticed by her, he flew off trying to keep up with the little green bird; he wanted to play with it. Being as young as he was, he got lost. Eventually he came upon a beach, he recognized this beach. It was the same one he passed when his mother and himself got back from their latest migration when spring arrived. He climbed up on the rocks to nap on the highest one. Sunny giggled as his wings flapped happily with the sun against his face. Once he got to the top he looked down into the clear, clean salt water. He marveled at his reflection. His reflection looked a little weird the second time he looked. He had pale blue eyes, not red. Sun wasn’t stupid but he was curious. He tentatively glided down to the lowest rock before leaning down at the other small being. Sun giggled and plucked out one of his wing feathers and held it towards the little thing in the water that stared back. He held it there until the little fish boy poked his head out of water and hesitantly took his brown golden feather and looked at it. His little red eyes marveled over the feather.
The little fish boy had what looked like frog legs and a shark tail larger than himself. Stemming from the base of his black fin hair was a long black strand with a little light at the end. His face was half navy blue and half white. He had purple and white freckles all over his face, long eyelashes, and his body was patterned with half blue and white. He had yellow patterns on his tail. Sun noticed his gills. He hadn’t really noticed them before. The little lunar boy looked at Sun’s large wings and body covered in feathers like a golden eagle. Both boys had razor sharp teeth although sun had more pronounced fangs while the fish boy’s teeth were all sharp the same. Both boys had pointed noses but the fish boy’s were more of a gentle slope while Sun’s stuck tight out. Sun’s rays were full of orange and yellow plumage. Both boys had sharp claws. Sun had little dark brown freckles but just on his cheeks. Sun’s face was half light yellow and half light orange.
Noticing the little boy in the water’s eyes on him, Sun’s feathers puffed up in pride. The little siren giggled softly and took a loose shiny scale from his tail and put it in Sunny’s hand. Sunny paused and smiled. Sun just wanted to play with the siren when his mother found him and screeched at him in a series of angry chirps and clicks and other bird noises. The little boy was confused as to why the larger harpy was angry at the smaller one. Sun’s mother grabbed him by the waist and flew off. The little siren frowned and swam off. Sunny rolled his eyes as his mother continued to squawk at him for being irresponsible and being near a siren.
“You could’ve gotten yourself killed! I look away for a minute and my eldest son decides it would be smart to mingle with murderers! You are not to go near that boy again!”
“But ma! He was nice to me! He didn’t do anything-“
“Not yet! You can’t give a siren the chance to take advantage of you! It’s in their nature to murder whatever thing is foolish enough to become their next meal!”
“But ma-“
“Enough! No more about it!”
Sun silenced. He was barely six, he didn’t understand why he couldn’t play with another kid. His expression was petulant as he angrily pouted. Sun didn’t have any actual friends because his mother was very overprotective and even wouldn’t trust him around other harpies besides his siblings and they were just chicks still. Sun didn’t really like his siblings, they all just screeched and bit him. Sometimes they would cuddle against him but he didn’t like that either because they would scream if he tried to get up. Sunny huffed and hung limply in his mother’s claws. What Sun probably hated the most was his mother’s mate. He wasn’t his father and the male harpy treated him as some random kid he has competition with so he was always mean to him. He didn’t hurt Sun, he just yelled and ordered him around. Sun didn’t know who his real father was but if he behaved anything like his stepdad then he didn’t want one. Sun was dropped back into their home constructed in the canopy of the island’s grand forest. Sun hated it there because he couldn’t run around.
Sun was dropped back into the nest and immediately one of his younger siblings hissed at him for no reason other than because he wanted to play fight. Sun was not interested in fighting with a baby so he walked away. Sun looked at the shimmering scale in his hand and immediately hid it when his stepfather looked in his direction. The grown man didn’t care what Sun did as long as it didn’t interfere with him so he looked back away. When Sun glanced at the scale again, one of his little sisters spotted it and decided they wanted it and would not leave him alone until she got it. Sun hissed at her to leave him be and she screamed and tried to bite him. His mother looked up and Sun stuffed the scale into his ray feathers to hide it before she noticed what it was his sister wanted.
“Sun, don’t tease her.” His mother growled at him.
“Ma. I’m not! She’s just biting me for no reason!” He lied.
“Why would she do that?”
“They all always do that!” He replied with a scowl.
His mother seemed to somewhat accept that answer and she came over and grabbed the chick and tried to shut her up herself. It eventually worked and Sun scurried off to the corner he designated as his. He sat down and looked over the wall into the forest below, that’s where he wanted to be, at least one of them. At night when his mother and stepdad were asleep, Sun clumsily climbed over the wall and glided down. He walked far enough until he couldn’t be heard, then he flew up and went back to that beach. He climbed back on the rocks like before and peered into the water. The water glittered like stars under the light of the moon. Sun scanned the water, his wings alert and pulled back to balance himself as he carefully climbed down. His feathers puffed up in frustration when he couldn’t find him. He was about to leave when his ankle was grabbed and pulled lightly but firmly into the water. He screamed and flailed until he was let go.
“PHTTTT!!!”
The little lunar fish boy laughed. He seemed a lot more confident now and less quiet than before. Sun glared before his eyes widened in seeing that his freckles and patterned scales glowed in the dark. His pupils dilated. Sun lightly touched his light that was connected to his head. The siren looked at where his hand was at. The siren smiled and closed his eyes and held his breath for a moment and that made it glow even brighter than it already was. Sun squealed in delight, his wet wings flapping. They couldn’t understand each other’s languages but they definitely understood each other well after a while. They played for hours. They played for a while in the water and eventually the moon began to set and Sun was still chasing the other boy. They giggled but when Sun noticed the moon he got scared. He hurried to get out of the water. He waved goodbye and shook himself dry and flew off back into the nest before his mother woke up. He settled back in his spot and instantly fell asleep.
Sunny was normally an early riser, the earliest of the family, so his stepdad was a little suspicious that Sun slept well into the late morning. He shook the little harpy awake.
“Bud… your mother told me to get you up for lunch… why the hell are you still sleeping anyway?”
Sun opened his eyes groggily. He groaned and turned over on his stomach. His wings flopped to his sides as he grumbled.
“I’m just a little sick is all…” That was a lie. He wasn’t sick but he knew if he said he was just tired then more questions would be asked. His stepdad just backed up in fear of catching whatever he had even if he didn’t believe him.
“Sick? From what?” He asked with an eyebrow raised. He was very suspicious. He might not have liked Sun but he could admit he wouldn’t just let some kid suffer to death.
“Maybe it’s from the pollen?”
The male just stared at the juvenile with his eyes squinted. He backed up and left but he wasn’t believing him quite easily. Sun got up and followed. He was quite sluggish. He was back to normal after he used his usual playtime to nap in a bush. He did that until his mother found him and brought him back to the nest. She didn’t think anything of it. Sun just went back again that night to play with the siren. He did the same the following nights for months. His mother assumed Sun had just gotten lazy but his stepfather still assumed he was up to something but didn’t care enough to look into it. A couple years passed with the same routine. Sun and the siren grew closer and began to understand each other more as they began to understand each other's words to the point where sun could understand and speak his siren tongue and the siren could do the same with Sun’s harpy language. Sun learned that the siren’s name was Moon and they grew even closer as they didn’t have a language barrier anymore. They began to merge both their languages to use some words in harpy and some in siren and they spoke like that normally with each other. The boys were the same age with Sun being older by a couple months. The late nights were Sun’s escape from his strict and lonely life with his real family. Sun got used to being awake overnight and some of the day.
Sun had turned twelve one spring, and his mother expected him to handle more responsibilities. He had to find food and watch his siblings and all that and he was exhausted. As Sunny spoke with his mother about winter, he accidentally used a uniquely siren slang word that basically meant ‘dang it’, he used that one a lot with Moon and when he spoke to himself. He didn’t realize what he said until his mother looked at him with a confused and concerned look.
“What was that…? Where’d you learn a word like that….? I don’t know what that is supposed to mean….”
Sun’s eyes widened as he internally panicked. His feathers puffed up in caution as he tense up. Sun finally realized what he just said.
“Oh! Uh…. It’s just a word I made up.” He fibbed. His mother didn’t let him off the hook.
“That didn’t sound like any natural noises we make… that sounded too precise to be just made up by you.” She pried. Sun got frustrated and stormed off. That surprised her. She didn’t remember him having this kind of attitude and short temper with her.
That night Sun crept out of the nest like always but this time his mother heard him. He flew to the beach and called out for Moon. Moon popped up quite quickly, he was always active at night and had a den in the area. Sun padded down to the rocks and sat down on one. He was tired since he’d done a lot that day. When Moon lifted himself onto the rocks besides Sun, Sun’s head moved down to rest on his shoulder. That made Moon freeze before gently bringing his hand to cradle Sun’s head. Sun fell asleep, his feathers warm against Moon’s scaly skin. Sun sighed happily in his sleep and that made Moon feel flustered. He didn’t know what to do so he just pet Sun’s rays softly. Sun slept for a while and Moon just lovingly gazed at him as he slept. Moon was a little giddy that Sun felt comfortable enough to sleep in his arms. Moon gently pecked a kiss on the side of Sun’s face. That woke Sun up with a wide eyed look. He looked dumbfounded. Moon giggled and picked him up and dragged him into the water. Sun yelped. His mother jumped up from her spot from which she was hiding but he was already gone.
Sun’s eyes were glued shut. He was terrified. He felt his body under the water and when he was afraid he couldn’t hold his breath that long. He felt a warm rush in his chest as Moon laid his palm flat against it.
“Open them… it’s okay.” Moon said calmly. Sun listened, not because he had to but he trusted Moon. Sun still hesitated because he was afraid his eyes would sting. As he opened his eyes he realized he could see clearly and without his eyes burning. He also realized he could breathe beneath the surface. He looked at Moon in astonishment. Sun got excited and started screeching happily. Moon laughed as he tried to shush him.
“We’ve got an hour before you have to go back to the surface.” Moon stated as he grabbed Sun’s hand and began to swim. Sun had learned to swim decently well for a harpy due to always playing in the water with Moon. He was slower but he could keep up somewhat. Sun watched Moon’s tail move in the water. As Sun kicked his legs, he looked at all the animals and plants in the water. He could never see any fish on the surface but down here he could see fish, crabs, starfish, and other creatures.
Sun marveled at everything as he held onto Moon’s hand Moon torpedoed through the water with ease. Sun was having trouble containing himself. He quite badly wanted to catch and eat a fish but he knew now wasn’t the time. Sun had an extraordinary time but when his hour was up and he returned to the surface, he couldn’t help but find himself missing it. He looked at Moon in the water as he stood in the sand. Sun walked back over and nervously gave him a quick peck on the lips and then flew off. Moon stood there shocked. He brought his hand up to his mouth and cracked a small smile before returning to the ocean.
When Sun returned to the nest, his mother was wide awake and staring at him in fury. She grabbed his wrist. She whispered since everyone else was asleep but if they weren’t she’d scream her lungs out at him.
“I thought I told you to stop mingling with that monster?! Then you’re over there letting yourself be dragged??? You could’ve died!”
Sun flinched and tried to pull his wrist back but she wouldn’t let go. He growled.
“He’s not a monster. He cares about me.”
“He’s a siren, he is incapable of caring about anyone other than himself!” She hissed
“That isn’t true. I know him, and he knows me. He knows me more than you ever have! And he actually does care about me!” Sun snapped back.
His mother’s eyes widened as her temper flared further but it also hurt her deeply that he thought that, no matter how true it might have been, it still hurt. His mother’s eyes narrowed back after a second.
“You are so disrespectful, after all I've done for you. All I’m trying to do is keep you safe and you are out there defending a sea monster over your own mother.” She practically growled.
“Maybe if you’d paid attention you’d know I've been at this for years… if you’d paid attention you’d know he makes me happier than anyone else has ever made me. If you’d paid attention you’d know that not all sirens are the same murderous monsters.” Sun was fuming. His feathers puffed up and his arms clenched at his sides. Sun was furious. He lifted his wings and flew off into the woods and made sure she didn’t follow. His mother sighed. She just assumed he’d come back when he cooled off. She went to sleep.
Sun flew right back to the beach but he didn’t want to disturb Moon’s normal routine after he left so he just slept, or tried to, in the tree in the forest bordering the beach. He was too angry to sleep. His wings fumbled around as he tried to get into a good sleeping position. His feathers all ruffled up and angry. Sunny growled as he tried to calm himself down. Sun didn’t think anyone saw him but he didn’t know Moon could smell him and recognize him from miles away. Moon was confused as to why he came back and he snuck over to the surface. He hadn’t really used his legs much on land but he eventually got standing. He softly padded to the bottom of the tree Sun was in without him noticing and looked up at him. Sun didn’t hear him. Moon looked around and then at the tree trunks. He tried to climb it but it was difficult for him since he was used to climbing on rocks at most. Sun felt the tree shake and he finally looked down and saw him. He jumped in surprise.
“Oh! I didn’t see you…” Sun muttered as he stuck out his hand for Moon to grab. Moon grabbed a hold of his hand and Sun pulled him up onto the branch he was on. Moon leaned on Sun, he wasn’t used to sitting on high branches and he was scared. As Moon dried off, his fins on his head looked more like spiny hair than anything. Sun brought his hand up and touched them. Moon didn’t mind. He just looked at Sun’s arm. He was used to Sun’s constant touching.
“Sun, what are you doing back here?” Moon finally brought himself to ask.
“I… my mom found out that I was still coming to see you every night and she said I couldn’t come back, then she started calling you names and I couldn’t take it and I left…”
Moon didn’t expect that answer. He didn’t expect that Sun would pick him over his mother. His heart fluttered even if he felt bad for Sun’s mother. Moon’s hand was clutched onto Sun’s arm to keep his own balance. His eyes fluttered down to his lap. He didn’t know how to respond to Sun’s words. He was finally able to spit something out after a while.
“What are you going to do now?”
“I have to go back… but I won’t right now.” Sun answered as he pulled Moon closer to put his chin on his shoulder. Moon’s heart beat just a little faster but he didn’t stop Sun.
“Okay…”
Sun slept in the tree that night with Moon right on him since Moon couldn’t get down out of fear. Sun didn’t want to move Moon when the sun rose so he let Moon sleep until he woke up on his own which wouldn’t be till late afternoon but Sun didn’t mind holding him till then. Moon was asleep all day on Sun’s warm fluffy chest. When Moon finally did wake up, he almost fell out of the tree in shock of where he was still at. Sun giggles as he catches Moon from rolling off of him. Sun grabs him by the waist and glides down gracefully and gently puts Moon back in the water. Moon wasn’t as quick to let go though. It took him a moment but he finally let go. His face was a bright pink. He’d never let Sun see him like that before, in his moment of weakness, but Sun didn’t do anything to him. Sun began walking back to his home in the canopy because he didn’t want to fly back to somewhere he didn’t want to be.