by Z Surakji
Amari and Mercury lived a relatively normal life. Apart from the eccentric coloring of Mercury’s hair and eyes, he showed no signs of abnormality. Many rumors and speculations were stirred up to try to explain this phenomenon.
“She probably didn’t inhale his steam in one go…”
“…It’s definitely the rain she collected. It was too stormy that day.”
It was all noise to Amari, shooed away by the intense love and appreciation she had for her son.
During their early childhood, these beings are no different from human children. They are, however, lightweight enough not to fall through the clouds. As they grow up over decades and centuries, two threads of golden light grow from their backs to form the base of their wings. Over time, the light extends branches where feathers sprout from, and the children become set for flight.
One by one, all the kids started to grow their wings and spread them towards the horizons. Slowly, the numbers of Mercury’s friends who were cloud-bound dwindled, until he was all by his featherless self. His base threads grew, and so did some of the branches. For one reason or another, however, not one feather ever grew. Feeling cast out, Mercury would always run back to his mother for consolation. She’d always tell him to just wait for his turn, and that it was normal for some kids to grow their wings before others. That was true, since every individual’s feathers grew out at different pacing…but not one feather?
Deep down, Amari knew this was abnormal, and that time was running out for her angel.
Mercury kept growing, as any child would.
His body got bigger.
His body got heavier.
Each step he took now started to push the cloud beneath his feet down, rather than bounce off of it. His movement became more sluggish each day, stumbling and tripping as he tries to catch up with his soaring friends. Every day, returning to his mother a little sadder. Every day, the desperation in her eyes growing more apparent.
But out of desperation springs innovation.
Amari grew impatient at the terrifyingly slow development of her son’s wings. So, like any mother driven by pure maternal instinct, she took matters to her own hands. She reached back, grabbed on one of the feathers and plucked it out. It fluttered and spilled traces of twinkling light into the air. She turned Mercury around and brought the stem of the feather to one of the branches. The closer it got, the more furiously it shook in Amari’s hand, like it was gravitating towards Mercury’s back.
The feather shot from Amari’s fingers and zoomed through the air towards her son intertwining with branch effortlessly.
Mercury had received his first feather.
© Z Surakji 2023-07-28