A/N: Some days you just want to write fluff. This is second person fluff based on an idea I had while deliriously trying to sleep with a rainfall white noise generator on and I probably shouldn't post this.

But I will anyway.

Tonight wasn't the greatest of nights for you. First of all, your camping partner ditched you at the last second, leaving you to wander the forest alone at night. Then your phone stopped getting a signal at some point and despite your best efforts, the signal wouldn't pick back up.

Now you were wringing out soaked clothes, as an unexpected bout of heavy rain forced you to put up your tent early, not that you could find the campsite in the first place, so a decently dry patch of land had to do.

Despite everything though, you kept your spirits up, as this turn of events was a nice change of pace, being less about hanging out with an old acquaintance and more about simply relaxing in nature's beauty.

So relaxed that the sound of wet, desperate-sounding footsteps knocked you off guard as a figure appeared at the entrance of your tent.

"H-hey!" Came a young female voice, figure obscured in the darkness. "Is there someone in there? I got caught out in this storm and need a place to dry off."

Considering there was no phone signal and no sign of nearby life, if this person turned out to have bad intentions, it could end badly for you.

But then again, your acquaintance didn't really seem like the trustworthy type in the first place, so you decided to unzip the entrance anyway, the figure rushing in behind you in the dark and breathing a sigh of relief.

"Thanks." She said simply as you stumbled for a light, turning on a cheap rechargeable lamp shaped like a lantern for novelty's sake, as you closed the entrance before too much rain could soak your drying clothes.

Turning to the woman, you were shocked to see that it wasn't a woman at all, but a girl with several bird-like features, including her feathery wings and ears, along with her fingertips ending in claw-like protrusions.

Great. You let a harpy into your tent.

You reached for the zip to your tent again, but the girl's hand wrapped around your arm before you could, showing a remarkable amount of strength for a girl her size. "Wait wait wait, don't kick me out, please! I won't eat you, I promise!"

That just raises further questions, but her grip kept you from moving any further until you eventually relented with a sigh, shuffling over to your supplies, looking for a drink, but still keeping an eye on your guest to make sure she didn't do anything untoward.

Instead of trying to tear your throat out, she leaned over to your rucksack, stuffed with all sorts of supplies with a curious look on her face. "So did you plan on staying out here on the Youkai Trail? That's gotta take some guts."

You didn't know what this strange girl was on about and didn't want to as you pulled out a bottle of sake, which caused her rose-coloured eyes to light up.

"No way, you brought sake too? Do you think I could have some?"

You look at her incredulously. She looks half your age at most and of all the things you didn't want to do tonight, getting a young girl drunk in the middle of nowhere was by far at the top of that list.

Perhaps only second was said girl tearing your throat out, so you decide to silently pour her a drink, the gentle pitter patter of rain on the tent's roof putting you at ease as you poured your own, offering one of the sake glasses to the girl who took it gratefully, but not before politely chinking it.

"My name's Mystia. Care to give yours, stranger?"

Despite your best efforts, she seemed determined to make friends with you, however fleeting it might be, so you finally decided to speak, giving her your name.

"That's a funny name." She smiled, taking a drink and appreciating the flavour quietly, letting rain fill the silence before your stomach grumbled, a reminder that you forgot to eat before leaving for your trip.

Fishing into your bag with a free hand, you pulled out some travel-safe food you got on the cheap, some dried eels on clearance you decided to buy on a whim, which compared to beef jerky seemed like the better deal at the time.

Looking at Mystia's face, you noticed a sliver of drool pouring from her mouth. "Could… I have some of that? We're probably stuck here for the evening and I was going to get something when I got back home…"

You rolled your eyes, tossing a pack at her, knowing full well you brought an excess of food, because why not?

Mystia eagerly tore open the packaging, chewing on the dried eel with a smile on her face. "I'm sorry for intruding so much on your evening, it must be really awkward to be interacting with a youkai like me."

You shrugged. Better this than leaving a poor girl outside to get soaked in freezing rain, despite the initial risk as you chewed on some eel yourself.

It would have been better cooked, but you were also expecting to be at a real campsite with amenities, instead of your current situation, so you dealt with the dried salty fishy taste, taking a drink of sake afterwards to wash down the flavour.

The companionship of the bird girl before you didn't go without appreciation either, having warmed up to her bubbly personality despite initially doubting her intentions.

"Y'know, you're a good listener, mind if I talk about myself for a bit while we wait for the rain to break?"

You didn't see any harm with her leading the conversation, considering the circumstances you almost wanted to see what a partial bird like her would want out of life.

"Well, I wasn't always this friendly with humans, I guess. Was always about scaring them, causing night blindness to raise their heartbeat before appearing out of the darkness to scare them witless, ha. Not defending it or anything and I especially got my fair share of payback from the particularly brave."

Her face fell on looking back at a worse version of herself before bouncing back, forcing a smile. "But now I want to be nicer to humans and well… You're the first I've tried this new approach with!"

You raised an eyebrow at this revelation, but Mystia seemed to be telling the truth, continuing to chew on eel with a somewhat silly smile plastered across her face. "On an unrelated note, I really like this eel, but it could do with being cooked."

You nod in agreement, as alright as the eel is on its own, it's too dry and tough for an enjoyable snack. No wonder it was on clearance.

"Y'know, people say that lamprey eel is good for night blindness," Mystia spoke up again somewhat contemplatively. "Yet I never see anyone eat any despite that. You'd think that the threat of the Youkai Trail would keep people alert, right?"

You tilt your head at the question, not familiar with the general area.

"Still, you had a walk around the area earlier, maybe the smell of grilled eel would tempt a weary traveller?"

You nod in response, mulling over your last piece of eel, having grown used to the salty flavour but still mildly annoyed that you had nothing better on hand.

Mystia for her part seemed to be enjoying her dried eel more. Or she was just hiding her grimace better, either or.

Finishing her own meal off in uncharacteristic silence, for the first time since she entered the tent, you were left to wonder what to do now. You did have a spare sleeping bag prepared for that acquaintance that ditched you, but it wasn't unfurled and you weren't exactly comfortable with keeping Mystia around for the evening, given her young appearance and the fact she's still a stranger to you.

It was then that you realize that the rainfall had stopped, lasting a good hour or so based on both your time setting up the tent after finding some cover and Mystia's appearance and subsequent conversation being a welcome distraction.

"Sounds like the rain stopped," She voiced your thoughts for you, a sad smile forming on her face. "And you've been a lovely host, but I should get going, I've been enough of a burden on you tonight."

A pang of sadness filled you, but you waved her off with a smile as she opened up the tent and walked out into the night, the still wet grass providing a soft splash to each step as Mystia faded into the shadows without another word, exiting your life as soon as she entered it as you felt tiredness fill you, closing up the tent with a tired smile, crawling to your sleeping bag and tucking yourself in with a content sigh.

A strange encounter to be sure, but not an unwelcome one.