Mother Nature's Spotlight 4/4
Title: Mother Nature's Spotlight
Chapter: 4/4
Author: kiroyo
Genre: Thriller, Drama
Warnings: Character death, taxidermy, hints of necrophilia
Rating: PG15
Pairing: Aoi x Uruha
Synopsis: When our skin touched and our eyes met, I knew we were meant to be.
Previous Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3
The more I peered through the mirror, the more I was reminded of my father’s butterfly collection. He loved it but my mother hated it. It’s a cruel hobby, she used to say, it’s a cruel notion to capture a fragile creature so very much alive and pin it down onto a board against its will. And then she’d steer me away from dad’s workstation as she tsked in distaste.
A week had gone by and Uruha was withering. Beautiful and perfect as he was, the luminescent glow around him had dimmed. Had my mother been right after all? Were beautiful things not to be kept and admired? If that was so, how would wax museums be explained then?
That’s it. Wax figurines - replicas of beautiful living entities. Replicas that would remain forever unchanged with the motion of time.
I smiled and let out a cry of victory. Yes, I knew how to salvage Uruha now. I knew how to freeze his beauty and withstand the sands of time. I gave the panel of photographs before me another long overview - shots of Uruha asleep at his desk, Uruha using his laptop, Uruha tabbing a page of his textbook, Uruha stepping into the shower, Uruha walking to school whilst choosing a song in his iPod, Uruha daydreaming in class, Uruha leaving the school gates, Uruha waiting for the lift and so much more. I grinned at my photolog.
I walked over to the mirror and called out to him. “Uruha, I’m gonna go out for a bit alright? I’ll be back soon.” He slowly turned around to face me. Hazel irises met mine, dull, black, and punctured - nothing like what I’ve seen at the bookstore when we’d first met. I grit my teeth with determination. Don’t worry. Don’t worry Uruha, I knew how to save you now.
I returned later that evening with all the materials ready. Anticipation coursed through my veins as I swerved everything on my desk onto the floor with a large swing of my left arm and then lined up all that I purchased neatly on the table. It was going to be a long process, but it was all going to be worth it.
Uruha barely flinched when I entered his room via the mirror. My heart fell again, at his lack of response. He was skinnier than he was a week ago for he barely ate anything that I had given him. All he consumed were fluids: water, soup, gravy. I tried coaxing him into eating but it seemed that he distanced himself from the tray with each word I spoke. Why? Why do you fear me so Uruha? I’ve never done anything to hurt you have I? Don’t worry, don’t worry my love. After tonight you won’t shy away from me ever again.
I returned to the work table and grabbed a hose and the bottle of chemicals I sneaked from the school laboratory. After reading through hastily scribbled instructions and mixing everything in the right proportions, I fastened the tube onto the conical flask and taped the other end to the gap beneath the mirror. Fumes begun infiltrating the space and Uruha’s eyes widened for a few seconds before turning glazed and he passed out.
By this time I guess you’re probably wondering why I did not enter his room to feed him or knock him out cold like I did in that back alley. The reason is simple: Uruha was a godsend. A mere inferior mortal like me couldn’t possibly lay a hand on him, with the exception of the back alley of course. We were meant to be, Uruha and I. But that also means that I couldn’t hurt him more than necessary. For that reason too, I’ve not laid a finger on him since he arrived a week ago. As much as I wanted to devour his body, fill his insides with my essence, I did not. I couldn’t, for I knew how much it hurts and Uruha was a virgin in that aspect. Don’t ask me how I knew that. He had to be. He was Uruha, mine and mine alone. His entire life was spent waiting for me in that bookstore and back alley. His skin was meant for my touch, and when that should happen was dependent on mutual consent. Ah his shirt rode up a little when he flumped onto the bed unconscious. My pants tightened and my member twitched. My lust went into overdrive. Soon, soon Uruha, we’d be moulded as one.
Taxidermy was a complex process. My father was a skilled practitioner and he would teach me in secret when my mother wasn’t tut-tuttering away at home. Son, he used to say, you realize the beauty of preservation don’t you? Mother Nature, or rather, God is cruel. He imposes a limit on all living beings on earth. Taxidermy is an uncanny ability to possess, son. It allows you to keep beautiful things beautiful forever. It freezes beauty in its peak and lets you admire them forever and always. Your mother doesn’t understand that. No she doesn’t. But you understand don’t you son? I had nodded eagerly then. And what my father said next had changed my life forever: Good, that’s my boy. Now I’ll teach you this magic.
So Uruha, such a rare beauty to behold, I’m going to keep you while you’re in your final stage of perfection. If another day should pass, the last of your beauty might wither away and I’d have to destroy you then. But I don’t want to, and I can’t bring myself to, for I already love you more than I should. Love, it’s a weird thing isn’t it? I’m doing all this out of love.
I carried you out of your room and begun the process then. Life slowly drained out of your eyes but it was alright. With hazel lenses, your eyes will be clear and bright again. Taxidermy was a fine art, and I’ve become skilled and precise under my father’s coaching so Uruha was nothing short of perfect when I was done.
He was still, stationary and immobile. A slight smile graced his succulent rose-tinted lips - the very same smile he gave me at the book store when he handed me my wallet. I also touched up the roots of his hair and recreated it to resemble the warp auburn glow it possessed that very day, in the setting sun. More than satisfied, I returned Uruha to his room and set him down on his bed. Again, the hem of his shirt rode up, his jeans slid down a little, revealing the corner of a hip bone, and my predatory senses were triggered once more. I smirked. Uruha, we have all the time in the world now.
Ah now you may ask, “Weren’t you going on about wax replicas earlier on?” Yes, right you are there but I mean… Why create a replica when you could have the original all to yourself?
A/N: I've finally finished it! \o/