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All Himiko has ever known is hunger. She’d always had a deep fascination with the macabre, the grotesque, and the absurd. She never got crushes on the kids at her school—in fact, she never even paid the other kids attention unless they got injured on the playground. When they’d fall and scrape their knee, Himiko would be the first to offer to take them to the nurse. She’d sit in that sterile office with that poor kid and watch as the blood dripped down their leg, exposed flesh red and raw. It was fascinating, absolutely exhilarating to her.
The reactions from her parents upon expressing this fascination were enough to drive in the fact that she was not normal. She was sent to priest after priest, church after church, exorcised in the name of the Lord more times than she could count. Still, her hunger grew.
Her church attendence had taught her one thing, however—God has a plan for everyone. Himiko just needed to know why hers included cannibalism.
Even after being sent to a religious school, she was still treated like an outcast—nobody wanted to be friends with the girl whose great sin was the temptation to consume the inconsumable. For years, Himiko was bullied and tormented by her peers.
Then Ochako stepped in. Ochako, with her gorgeous eyes and soft brown hair, skin so delicate and warm, saved Himiko—consequently, Ochako had put herself in immeasurable danger.
And suddenly, Himiko had found her God-given purpose. Why else was she born unto this Earth if not for that girl? What else was she to do if not to consume her wholly and completely, to let holiness flow through her veins like the warm blood under soft skin?
Ochako was everywhere. She followed Himiko around the school like a ghost, waited for her after school with a patient smile, and walked her home every day.
And Himiko wanted so badly to just tear her fingers into Ochako’s chest, to rip apart her entire being and take her home to sleep. She wanted to dig her thumbs into Ochako’s brown doe eyes and pop them into her mouth like a couple of grapes. She craved the feeling of twisting and turning Ochako’s head and feeling her bones pop-pop-pop!
If Himiko were to take a knife and strike it through Ochako’s center, how long would it take for her to bleed out? How would she writhe and squirm in her last fleeting moments of life? It filled Himiko with a feeling akin to ecstasy, thinking about the many ways in which she could kill the unsuspecting girl.
She wanted to kill Ochako. She needed to kill Ochako. It was what God put her on this Earth to do.
She needed to unzip the girl’s flesh and make herself at home in her veins. She needed to tear her hair from her corpse and braid it into soft portions. She needed to be Ochako, and the only way to do that was through total consumption.
So Himiko hid herself away one Monday morning, watching from afar as Ochako glances around looking for her. After accepting that Himiko wouldn’t be at school that day, Ochako went about her morning like usual. Himiko stalked her like a phantom, silently following her from behind. She crept and snuck around the school, waiting for the right moment to strike.
When students began to leave in flocks, Ochako was the last to leave. She was still waiting for Himiko to show up, even though the day had ended.
She left, and Himiko followed her like a wolf preying upon a lamb. She bared her teeth, waiting, still waiting to go in for the kill. But the little lamb found its way back to the farm, sheltering herself in the safety of her flock.
Himiko stood outside of the apartment complex, staring up at Ochako’s window. She needed to do this—if she didn’t, Ochako would haunt her forever.
Ochako was the epitome of all things holy and pure. She was the key to Heaven. God had put her on this planet for Himiko to kill, and Himiko wasn’t about to deny a command from God. Ochako was soft and gentle and kind and angelic—so very angelic, so very holy. The moon and stars, they will weep for the blood spilled from her delicate veins. Her iridescence will pour out from her heart and coat Himiko in her holiness.
And Himiko is hungry. She is still hungry. She has always been hungry.
The predator stalks its prey magnificently, getting into position with ease and grace. She sees the lamb, sleeping and unsuspecting of its imminent death. Sin is crouching at her door, but Himiko will overcome it.
And she prayed,
“Father in Heaven, blessed be thy name. Lord, my God, you have blessed me eternally.”
She opened the window.
“Forgive me of my tresspasses, for you sent your only son to die on the cross for my sins. I fall not into temptation, but in obedience. I sacrifice to you, Lord God, my holiest lamb. With this offering, may my hunger be satiated. For yours is the kingdom—”
She hovered over the sleeping lamb.
“The power—”
She raised the knife.
“The glory.”
The sleeping lamb begins to stir.
“The kingdom. Forever and ever.”
Ochako stared up at Himiko with wide, fear-stricken eyes. Himiko closed her prayer with a whisper.
“Amen.”
Ochako couldn’t even scream before Himiko had an arm pressed into her mouth, fingers digging into the back of her throat as she choked on pink nail polish and a silver ring. She tried biting, kicking, shouting—Himiko’s smile only seemed to grow wider the harder she bit, the harder she kicked, the more she tried to plead for God to save her from this torment.
Ochako hooked her leg under Himiko’s stomach, kicking hard enough to send the blonde tumbling back for a second. Himiko’s arm popped free from Ochako’s throat, and the brunette didn’t waste a second trying to run away. Her throat was bleeding and raw from the intrusion—all of her cries for help came out as barely audible gasps bubbling at the back of her throat.
Himiko, after regaining her bearings, tackled her to the floor, the thump of their bodies dampened by the plush pink carpet. Ochako barely catches her wrist in time as Himiko swings the knife toward her face. They were stuck in a stasis—Ochako knew that in order to get help, to save herself, she needed to move. If she moved, however, Himiko would have the perfect opportunity to strike and kill.
Ochako, with her raw, raspy throat, choked out in the middle of their equilibrium, “Himi…ko…why?”
Himiko smiled sweetly at Ochako, then leaned in and caught her bleeding lips in a kiss. Ochako was stunned into submission, foregoing her attempts to escape in utter surprise.
Then, Himiko whispered gently, “I was put on this Earth for you, Ochako. My life is nothing if not made for yours. May your divine soul and mine be sanctified in this holy act.” Himiko thrust the knife into Ochako’s throat, the brunette gurgling and spitting up fresh blood.
“Amen.”
As the blessed body go limp in her arms, Himiko removed the body’s clothes and began to carve.
She carved and carved and ate and ate, praising the Lord and thanking him for the grand feast he had given unto her. She plucked out two brown doe eyes, braided soft hair into gentle portions, and sipped crimson blood like fine wine. As the sun rose and cast its warmth upon the two, Himiko finished her meal. Bones of marble and teeth of ivory were all that was left behind.
Himiko removed her own garments, draping herself in the bloodied clothes of Ochako. Knife aimed to her heart, she prayed:
Father in Heaven,
Blessed be thy name.
I give great thanks for this glorious feast you have bestowed upon me.
My purpose on this Earth has been fulfilled,
So let me join you in your Kingdom, Heaven,
And may Ochako and I live in your holiness forever and ever.
Amen.