Young Writers Society

Resa Mae squinted downhill from her place in the old twisted tree and saw the vague familiar figure of her friend. Smiling, she swooped down to meet him with her large leafy green wings. "Emmet!" she exclaimed, "How did your interview go?"

The tall pale man ruffled his scruffy brown hair as he laughed, "I think it went pretty well! They said they would get back to me soon! I have a good feeling about it."

"I'm so glad to hear that! I'm sure you’ve got the job. How could they say no? How is Sheira feeling? Is she any less queasy?"

Emmet sighed lightheartedly. "No, but the doctor said that her morning sickness should fade soon. He said it was nothing to worry about."

"Ah, well, tell her that I wish her well and that I would love to meet her once she does!" Resa habitually drew her long green braid over her shoulder as she smiled.

Emmet grinned warmly.

Suddenly, his grin morphed into a cold, cruel smile. Resa looked around as flames began to surround her with growing intensity. Shrieks of terror filled her ears, but all she could see was his smile as the world around her became fire. She tried to cover her ears but nothing would drown out the sound of the screams. She fell on her knees crying, "I'm so sorry! I didn't know! I didn't- I'm so-

~~~

-Sorry!" Resa shouted as she woke with a start. Her leafy hammock swung violently after her aggressive movement. She sat there breathless for moment, adjusting her eyes to the world around her. Her wings were tensely enveloping her body as an instinctual protective blanket. She opened them slowly as she finally exhaled. She lifted her chestnut-colored hand up to her chest to feel her heart beating erratically. As she took a moment to relax her body, she wiped her forehead with her other hand to find it drenched in sweat. "Gods, it like I was in an actual fire," she spoke to her herself out loud in a quiet, tired voice. Her peridot green eyes look up at the stars as she lifted her chin towards to sky. She seemed to be searching for something as she sat there, breathing heavily, although she did not know what she was hoping to find.

When will these nightmares end? Every time I think I'm doing better it seems to get worse. Resa rose with a sudden burst of decisiveness. "I just need some air. That's all. I'll feel better once I fly around a bit."

Resa circled around the large oak tree that she called home, and soared above the trees below. Trying to clear her mind, she sought out a familiar fried, swooping down to hover above the forest floor, Resa searched the nearby trees and bushes. A small rustling noise caught her ear. Although it was dark, she could see the small bushy tail of her sugar glider companion.

Resa laughed softly as she called, "Spruce! There you are! What kind of mischief are you up to this time?" She glided into a kneeling position and stretched out her arm for Spruce to climb. The small creature quickly scurried up her arm to rub his cheek against hers. He looked up at her quizzically as he munched on a small seed.

"What? So I decided to go on a midnight fly, what's so weird about that? You go on adventures all the time at this hour. Spruce chattered back at her. "Ok! I know this is when you are awake all the time, but I should be able to have some late night fun too!" He chattered more. "I am not making excuses to hide why I am actually awake! Honestly, why would you even think that, you silly fluff." Spruce grumpily turned his body away from her. "Fine, be like that!" Resa concluded.

Her body rose above the terrain as she continued her flight. In her periphery, she noticed something odd. A faint trail of smoke rose from the forest floor close by. Curiosity steered her towards the smoke clouds. Silently she circled above the area and squinted down at the site. Although it was night, the moon was bright and lit the small clearing in a blue-grey haze. She sourced the smoke to a small dying campfire, and close by was a man sleeping. Resa immediately shrunk back at the sight of a human, but she slowly hovered down to land on a nearby tree. With a closer view she could identify that it was a young man with brownish hair that surrounded his head messily. For someone sleeping he seemed awfully restless. She held her breath as he moved abruptly to his side. Letting her breath out, she noticed that his face was drenched with sweat, and looked bruised and beaten. She grimaced, and would have felt pity if he were not a human.

On the other side of the campfire, however, was a golden palomino horse with glossy white hair. She would have admired its beauty if it were not for the look of stress and concern on its face. It was not asleep, but instead paced back and forth, looking over toward the man often. Resa bit her lower lip in thought as she observed the distressed horse. She glanced towards Spruce, who had now moved to sit comfortably on the back of her hand. "What do you think I should do?" she whispered. Spruce blinked back. "Help them? Are we not looking at the same scene? That guy down there is human!" She continued to whisper in a barely audible volume.


Hmm. I guess I could get a closer look to figure out what's stressing that poor horse out so much. That man does look in pretty bad shape. Resa huffed as she softly retorted, "Urrgh, I hate when you're right." She gently put her hand on a branch for the critter to climb onto.

Thus, the small harpy nimbly glided down to the floor a few feet away from the horse. Its eyes widened as it snorted in a start. As it backed away she put her hands out palms forward and tried to shush it and calm it down. "I'm not going to hurt you," she whispered as she glanced to the left where the man was sleeping, "I'm a friend. I just want to see if I can help." Resa timidly stepped toward it as she slowly reached out her hand for it to sniff. The horse looked cautious as it took a step forward to smell her hand. She assumed she smelled friendly, since it seemed a little more at ease than before. Cautiously approaching closer, she put her hand lightly on its muzzle, stroking above its dark nose. Resa smiled in an attempt to comfort it. "You're okay, but you seem pretty stressed about your human over there. Though I don't understand why anyone would actually care for one." She looked into his deep brown eyes, and said, "You really do care about him, don't you?"

Resa stood there in thought, petting the muzzle of the horse for comfort. Maybe humans aren’t all as bad as you think they are. Or maybe this horse has no one else to care for him. Or maybe you're stupid for going down here in the first place because this is extremely dangerous and you could get killed being this close to a human's camp! Resa shook her head and blinked as her own inner thoughts turned on her. What else can you do? It's not like you’re busy. Admit it, this is the most exciting thing that's happened all month. Wow, that's pathetic. You really have nothing to lose, don't you? She removed her hand from the horse to cover her face in frustration. Just go check it out! Maybe you can help them both feel better.

Before she had a chance to change her mind, Resa daintily walked over to the sleeping man to observe his state. Ouch, this guy took a beating. Is this how all humans treat each other? The feverish man shivered as the breeze grew strong for a moment. Yikes. Fever, chills, and a bunch of cuts and bruises. He looks exhausted. When was the last time he slept?

The harpy made her way back to the horse, and whispered, "Don't worry, friend, I know just the thing that can help him. Just stay here and try to get some rest." She smiled warmly as she flitted away to meet Spruce up in the tree. "C'mon, Spruce. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm going to make this sad human some of my famous healing tea. Let's go!" The sugar glider climbed up her arm right before she soared away to get the ingredients.

She returned to her oak tree to find the medicinal herbs and spices she kept for emergencies. On a small branch up high hung several small bags made from leaves. Each of them bore labels in harpy-tongue. After a few seconds of deliberation, she took out a small dagger in her belt and slashed several off the branch, catching each respectively. She placed them all inside an iron pot, and grabbed a cup and a ladle to put in as well. Just as she placed her hands on the pot to carry it away, she paused. "What am I doing? Why am I doing this?" she chuckled in disbelief, "It's like I want to die!" She paused, looking down at the bowl, "...do I want to die?" She sat there with her lower lip quivering until she felt the comforting snuggle of her friend against her cheek.

"You're right, that's a stupid question, really." She grabbed his small body and held him in her palms. "What would I do without you, little buddy?"

~~~

After flying for weeks by night and minimal sleep, Resa's body began to feel weak. Her wings flapped slowly and she drifted downwards. He vision blurred as tears overtook her eyes, and her wings cramped up. She careened toward ground and skid on the leave covered dirt of the forest floor. Resa weakly used her elbows to lift her muddied face off the ground. Her cries became chokes mixed with incontrollable wails as her face contorted with pain. As she lay there, she heard a shuffle of leaves. For a moment, panic struck her as she looked wildly around for the source, but her vision was still obscured by her emotions. She blinked and looked up to see a baby sugar glider a foot away from her face. She stared blankly for what felt like minutes, but was most likely a few seconds. The small, fuzzy creature tilted his head and seemed to be asking the question, "Who are you? Are you ok?"

"Hi, there, uh," Resa's voice was rough from crying, "I'm Resa Mae." She tried to give a smile, but she could only summon a weak grimace. "What are you doing out here all by yourself, little guy?"

The little animal chattered back. Resa looked around to find no signs of any of his companions. "...Are you all alone too?" She managed to ask, choking back incoming tears, "because I would love a friend right now."

~~~

Bark!

Resa’s mind returned to the present. Glancing down at her little companion who was looking up at her expectantly.

“Oh!” Resa exclaimed as she stood up suddenly, grabbing the pot as she rose, “I must’ve got lost in my own thoughts for a moment! Lost track of time,” She shook her head in an attempt to shake away her thoughts, “Silly me, I’ve got places to be!” Spruce climbed up a branch and glided onto her shoulder right before she leaped off and flew back towards the now fainter smoke trail.

Once she arrived, she kept herself busy by refueling the fire, heating the pot so the water would boil, and stirring in herbs and spices methodically. As she followed her recipe by memory, she kept on glancing towards the man still sleeping just a few feet away. She made extra effort to be as quiet as possible. Her insides twisted as she resisted the urge to flee from this species she was raised to fear and hate all of her life. For a moment, he looked like someone she once knew, and she flinched for a brief moment before realizing her mistake. She sighed reprimanding herself for her ridiculousness. The longer she had the tea steep, the more her eyes got lost in the small bright flames of the fire, taking her mind back in time.

~~~

Shrieks of terror filled her ears. All around her were flames consuming her village. Smoke polluted her lungs, making her breathing jagged.

"Let me help!" Resa screamed as she rushed toward the burning house of her childhood best friend. She was quickly stopped by the large arm of Nazuid, her long-time mentor.

His face was grave, and his mouth twitched with contempt. "If you wanted to help you would have never led the humans to our peaceful village. You no longer have any place here. We do not want your help."

He pushed her backwards as he kept walking, but Resa rebutted, "Lead the humans here? I didn't do that! Listen to me-"

"No!" he exclaimed, "You listen to me! As of this moment, you are dead to the entire tribe of Enhalyn! And if I were you, I would be dead to myself too! Never let us see your traitorous face again! Now, leave!" His voice broke on his last word, and he turned around and walked away so Resa could no longer see his face.

She stood there with tears streaming down her cheek and her hand reaching out towards her mentor.

~~~

Resa blinked at the unexpected memory and tried to redirect her thoughts. The tea should be about ready now. I wish it wasn’t. Now I have to actually do something.

Resa took the ladle and poured some of the tea in the small wooden cup. She watched as the steam gracefully drifted upwards. She glanced over at the man. He’s just a human, that is, a very sick one. I don’t think I’ll have to worry about him beating me in a fight right now. Why am I so worried? The worst that could happen is he tries to kill you and you fly away before he can even compose himself. Think of the horse. Poor thing seems so worried. What a dumb thing to worry about. Maybe the horse sees something I don’t. To be fair, I don’t know him. I’ve heard stories of the days when humans and harpies actually got along. There has to be some goodness in some of them. But this kind of thinking is what got you in this mess in the first place. Do you ever learn? Or will you always be making the same old stupid decisions?

Resa growled in frustration. She mouthed to herself, “How about you shut up for once!”

She stood and made her way towards the human, and found herself doing a strange dance as her foot kept stepping forward and backward in hesitance. She looked down at her foot and frowned. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. Staring at the man just a few feet away, she finally spoke out loud, “Would you like some tea?”

James didn't know if he was going to make it through this one.

He turned on his side, feeling his body ache at every movement. The swelling on his left eye had gone down, but everything still felt tender to the touch. There was a whole list of things to take care of - bruised ribs and countless other bruises, a stab wound in his side, and his right ankle was killing him. No amount of stretches seemed to help it recover, but he knew it was because he'd been walking and running on it so much.

And all of that pain would have been bearable were it not compounded with the sickly haze of fever and chills.

It took all of his self-control not to throw off his blankets and clothes and let his body succumb to the cruel cold of the night. He felt like he was boiling - disgustingly so. His hair was sticking to the back of his neck and his chest was heaving with labored breaths.

He'd brought this upon himself.

The passing of time had become unclear the moment James had permitted himself to lie down, and once he'd laid down, he'd felt like he was being held down by a million weights. Opening his eyes felt like a chore. It was just enough to breathe, and let the waves of sleep and hazy consciousness come and go, forgetting each passing dream as it left.

But then a voice spoke from the quiet night, yanking his eyes open and causing his heart to race.

They've finally come to kill you. They're finally-

When his eyes focused (somewhat), he stared.

That was no human.

She had dark wings, and feathers over her eyes. He'd never seen a harpy in person before. He'd only ever heard stories. Caught glimpses.

It took him a few seconds of silence to realize how loud he was breathing, each exhale trembling like he was some kind of shaking leaf, barely hanging on before he was torn away into the wind.

By the time he thought to respond, he'd forgotten her question, if she'd even asked. He wanted to believe it was just another fever dream, but he didn't trust his imagination to invent a harpy in such detail. Then again, he'd been wrong about many things before. It wasn't outside the realm of possibility.

Resa looked down at the bewildered man in front of her.

WoUlD yOu LiKe SoMe TeA? Dragons above, that's the dumbest way to approach an asleep stranger I've ever heard! He must think you've lost your mind! Oh gosh, he's staring. What do I do? What do I do? Run! No. Agh!

"S-sorry to frighten you. I-I noticed your camp, and your beautiful horse looked so distressed and I felt bad and I saw you and you looked bad so I thought about it aaaaannnd I made you some tea to help with the fever and chills..." Resa breathed in deeply after that long sentence and tried to smile as friendly as possible, but she was pretty sure it looked more scared and forced than genuine. She held out the tea cup as if to prove her story true.

What on the Nye am I doing?

James felt light-headed, and he wasn't sure how that could happen while still and lying down.

He didn't know if he should trust that the harpy was real. Maybe it was just the manifestation of his body's call for help, desperately reaching for some kind of cure for all of the pain and the sickness. It felt too convenient and too kind of the universe for a harpy to approach out of nowhere with a cure. The world was never so kind to him. He never expected such mercy.

But the harpy did look genuinely scared. Scared of a sick and broken man, but he understood. Even while prone and barely lucid he was considered an enemy. Humans had never been kind to harpies since the calamity.

"Oh," he finally rasped, deciding to let the dream play out, or on the off chance it was real, remain as alert as he could to respond.

"Thank you," he said, his voice low and rough like sandpaper. His throat was dry, and his eyes were glazing over again. He could feel the weight of exhaustion threatening to pull them shut. Another wave of chills ran up him, from his head to his feet and he shuddered.

“Oh, uh,” Resa let out an awkward yet relieved laugh, “No-no problem!” There was an awkward silence as she realized she had to actually get near to him to give him the tea. Stiffly, she walked closer to the man and bent over to hand him the cup. Her arms shook as she reached down. She hoped he wouldn’t notice. “Here you go! Nice and hot! It’s actually quite easy to make! And there’s plenty extra if you need it.” Her voice gained confidence the more she spoke. Well, it at least sounded more confident, however, her insides were still crawling with shivers of fear and trepidation.

James watched as the harpy got closer and fought to keep his eyes open. As she extended the cup towards him, he watched it blankly for a moment, thinking about the blanket he'd swaddled himself in. He thought about moving, and how sore his arms were, and the knots in his shoulder.

With eyes barely open, he started to sit up. He slid his arms out of the blanket and propped them up on either side, pushing himself up. He winced as pain shot down his side only to relax his face as his head began to spin.

He had to be dehydrated. He couldn't remember when he'd laid down. It had to have been longer than he thought.

Finally sitting up with a fragile sense of balance, he reached out for the mug, eyes cracked open and his hand shaking as much as hers - not that he was able to tell. He put his hand over hers, ready to receive the cup of tea.

Resa’s heart stopped as their hands made contact. In a moment, her eyes widened and she stood up and drew her hand away a little too quickly. She looked at her hand as if it might fall off a any moment, but soon realized he was watching her do so. She pushed aside the haunted memories that rushed to her mind, and awkwardly took a step back. She mustered up the strength speak, albeit quieter than before, “I hope it’s still hot, if not I can get you more. I tried to make it sweet with honey so it wasn’t just like bitter medicine, but if it still tastes bad I totally get it!” Resa tried to slow her breathing as she felt her heart beating loudly. She started to fear he could hear how loud it was when she stopped speaking. She glanced around, looking out at the dark forest in the silence that wasn’t as excruciatingly long as it felt.

James had not been ready for the sudden exchange. As she ripped her hand away, his hand wobbled back and forth, fighting to keep the tea from spilling, but some got on his hand anyway. It was burning hot, and he set the cup down on the ground to shake his hand and dry it off.

He hadn’t spilled that much tea, but just enough to sting.

His vision was fuzzy as he wiped his hand on his blanket, but he saw how the harpy withdrew, and the terror in her eyes as she looked at him. He didn’t know if words would reassure her that he was harmless.

He picked the cup back up, bringing it to his lips and working hard to focus on having steady hands. The tendrils of heat brushed against his face, confirming that he was just as warm. His head felt heavy.

“I’m not concerned about taste,” he said quietly, his voice still raspy. “But I am very thankful for your kindness, and this selfless gesture.”

He lifted the cup to his lips and sipped carefully. It was a little bitter, but the honey and the herbs felt healing. He closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath as he swallowed.

“It’s lovely,” he whispered, feeling his body beginning to sway. He threw out his free hand, steadying himself, and then sipped again.

Resa was taken aback at the gentleness and kindness of his tone. She looked down trying to feel relieved, but felt more confused instead. She drew her braid to the front as she squeezed her anxiety into it. Looking down at him, she realized that she probably should have considered his physical state when she practically threw the steaming hot tea at him. Wincing at her own dumb inclinations, she tried to spark some more conversation to lighten the mood. Or to distract herself from the constant warnings her body was shouting at her. IT’S A TRAP. ABORT MISSION. FLEE AT ALL COSTS. She looked over at the horse and stated, “Your horse is beautiful, by the way. It has kind eyes. What’s its name?... if you mind me asking.”

James glanced over at Elliot. Elliot seemed to be rather calm, nibbling at the earth around the tree he was tied to. The fire had been rekindled, and he assumed that the harpy had done so to make the tea.

He should’ve been grateful, but the heat of the fire felt overwhelming when he himself was burning up.

He tried to fix his eyes on the harpy again as he sipped. He watched her mouth move as she spoke, working his mind to pay attention.

“His name is Elliot,” he answered before taking another drink.

“Elliott..” she murmured, “somehow it seems fitting.”
Glancing back at Elliott, she added, “I’m glad he seems calm now. Earlier he was nervously watching you.” She looked back toward the man in front of her. “I didn’t know horses could get so attached to their humans. It’s endearing. Really.”

Looking down at the man’s uncomfortable position, Resa had an idea flurry to her mind. Timidly she continued, “Would... you excuse me for a moment? I think I forgot to get something.”

She hurriedly flew off and landed several trees away. She hoped it was far enough away for him to not see. Moving her hands skillfully, she watched as the soft leaves lifted off the ground and drifted towards her, swirling in circles. The leaves interwove into a large pillow shape. She grabbed it midair and put her cheek to it. “Seems pretty comfy if I do say so myself. Although this seems unnecessary, I might as well since he seems decent enough.” As she mumbled to herself, she saw out of the corner of her eye her little friend. “Ah, there you are, Spruce. Have you just been watching us the whole time?” He chattered as he ran towards her. Reaching out her arm to meet him, Resa replied, “What? I was not that awkward! ... ok, it was pretty bad... but what did you expect of me, really!” Spruce gazed up at her with his large black eyes from his position on her shoulder. “Wow, that’s a pretty high standard,” Resa quipped, looking a bit surprised at the supposed comment by her companion.

Resa flew back to the campsite, holding the pillow to her chest. She stepped forward placing the pillow near his head. “I figured this might help you sleep,” was all that came out of her mouth as she shrugged.

When the harpy flew away, James has assumed that was the last of it.

It was either the most vivid of dreams, he was really losing it, or it was real. He wanted to believe the latter, because the tea felt very real, and his throat already felt significantly better as he finished off the tea.

He hadn’t realized how quickly he’d drank it until he was staring into the empty cup.

Well, he was grateful for the gift while it lasted. He set the cup down, ready to slump back onto the ground at the moment the harpy woman came back, wings flapping above him alarmingly close. He wasn’t sure if the wind he felt was from her wings or another wave of chills.

It took him a second to realize she’d returned with a pillow made of leaves.

He looked up at her, neck craning back as she was right beside him.

There was a small creature on her shoulder. Not quite a chipmunk, not quite a squirrel. It was staring at him.

James felt his head grow heavy again. He slowly slid down to his elbows, before plopping down onto the pillow of leaves. It was surprisingly comfortable.

“Why are you helping me?”

The harpy stifled an awkward laugh as she spoke, “Ha, um, well, you see...,” she glanced down at Spruce for assistance with little avail, “...you see, I couldn’t sleep, and Spruce here dared me to, and Elliott was so worried, and I ... don’t have anything else to do,,, she sighed as she looked down in embarrassment. Noticing his empty cup, she asked weakly, “Would you like more tea?”

James watched as the harpy stumbled over her words. She didn’t seem very sure of herself, but James couldn’t tell if she was nervous because she was helping a human or if she was just like that.

He turned his head slightly to look at the fire.

“I’m not sure that I feel like getting back up just yet,” he said. “As you’re already aware, my body isn’t exactly functioning well at the moment.”

He paused, and looked back up at her.

“Are you sure you want to be seen... with me?” he asked.