Yara knew it was time and raised her lotus shaped eyes to scan the skies.
The moon was a large glowing disc in the dark velvet firmament. The earth below lay silent and serene bathed in its white silvery light. The water reflected the shine brightening up Yara’s pearly white face and etched luminous patterns on her lustrous tresses that shimmered as Yara shook her head in desperation.
The fish, swimming by were enthralled by her ethereal beauty. They bowed their heads in reverence to the Water Princess.
Yara ignored everything. She continued to scan the darkness above. Her tiny mouth clenched in a little red pout as she waited, lashing her perfectly shaped tail fin impatiently.
And then she heard it!
The deep whoosh as his wings beat against the wind. She had been straining her ears for this familiar sound. Yara’s face brightened up with a smile.
Soon a dark form appeared silhouetted against the white moon. Yara waited as she watched the form grow bigger till she found a pair of large round yellow eyes looking down on her as Marich roosted on a tree trunk close to where Yara was waiting for him.
Marich stared back at Yara. He could never have enough of her beauty. Ever since that first day when he had spotted her on one of his nightly fishing ventures, he had been smitten. The slender swan-like neck when she raised it to look into his eyes, her long smooth arms as she held them open for him and her wide beautiful eyes when she coyly looked at him from behind thick dark eyelashes, had entranced him and Marich had fallen in love immediately.
Seeing him look at her now, Yara smiled shyly, blushing deeply at his unabashed stare.
“How have you been today my Love?” she asked him in her soft lilting voice.
“Sleepy!” Marich answered in his thick grating voice.
They both laughed. The happy carefree melody echoed through the forest surrounding them.
“What about you, my Princess? Did the oceans keep you entertained enough” Marich enquired tilting his head flirtatiously.
“Not enough to hold me back for long. I rode the waves as soon as I could, to be with you.” Yara moved closer.
Marich sighed as her heady briny scent of seaweeds filled his senses.
“Come then. Let us make the most of tonight like all nights.”
All through the night Yara and Marich, a mermaid and an owl, two unusual hearts tied in love, talked, laughed, and shared their stories. Their moments of togetherness were limited, fragile and indefinite. No one knew what lay beyond the night. When the sun rose again, they would be separated.
The sun was their enemy but the moon their closest ally.
It was a witness to their love, their hopes of a life together though both knew that was not to be. And yet they kept meeting. Hoping to see the other if only for one last time.
When Yara was telling him about the pearls she had discovered in a corner of the ocean, she could feel Marich stiffen. She knew he had spotted a prey. This was the only time she felt uncomfortable around Marich.
Yara moved off silently to not disturb or distract him.
But Marich, momentarily, was oblivious to Yara. His eyes focused stiffly on the water, the small dark pupils staring hard at the gurgling stream as the fish tried to hide within its ripples.
But escaping Marich was difficult.
With alarming swiftness, he jumped into the shallow stream, pinning down his prey with his large, curved talons. He held it down firmly ignoring its struggle to escape his iron grip.
Yara winced as she saw the little thing splutter and gasp.
When he felt the fish was weakened enough, he raised it to his mouth and crunched its little head with his sharp hooked beak. In a few quick gulps he pushed the fish down his throat. The tail wiggled as the last sign of life ebbing out of his little body.
Marich turned around to notice Yara looking a bit pale.
“I am sorry” he said apologetically “I know you do not like it but…”
“But that is who you are” said Yara softly “You cannot change yourself for me.”
“Yes but I wish I could!” said Marich desolately.
“No. Then I could not love you anymore” said Yara strongly.
“Oh Yara!” said Marich forlornly “What is to become of us? Can we never have a life together?”
Yara smiled gently as she moved forward and pulled him towards her and stroked his head.
“We have chosen this life Marich. We must live with it. We could have chosen one of our kind and lived happily ever after. But we did not. We chose us and we are happy are we not?”
“And what about the ‘ever after’ part? Can we never build a nest like everyone else” said Marich with a glum look, fluffing his tawny feathers indignantly.
Yara laughed tickling his head lovingly.
“We have already!”
Marich looked up confused his yellow eyes boring down into Yara’s blue ones.
“In our hearts, silly!” Yara giggled stroking his ear tufts that drooped lazily against his shoulders “and that is where we will always keep on living. It is never the same for everyone is it, Marich? Our ‘ever after’ is probably a bit different. Maybe we do not have a Tomorrow. But we do have our Today. And that is what we should celebrate.”
Marich nodded.
A grey light streaked the night sky preparing it for a new day.
Yara kissed him goodbye.
“Till tonight my love” she whispered lovingly slipping into the waters.
Marich stood watching wistfully as she disappeared into the azure waters her tail fin flapping playfully spraying him with the froth.
“Till Tonight Princess. And every night after” he promised silently to the fading moon.
That was bitter sweet – beautiful!