The Way Things Are
By Jendayi Brooks-Flemister, first published in FIYAH
After going on a date with another beast-woman, a woman figures out her date isn't what she seems.
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Plot Summary
The woman cuddles on the couch with her date. They kiss and talk about how nice it was to meet each other on Beast Finder, an app for monsters, as there are so few impundulu around. The woman wonders when she’ll feel normal, to which her date says that this is her new normal now, as someone no longer fully human. The woman feels anxious about it, but she appreciates getting to be with someone who understands. She thinks about how lucky she is to match with her date, who apparently founded the Beast Finder platform.
After some time, the woman says she has to go, to feed her cat and get ready for work tomorrow. She gets her things in her kitchen and tries to leave, but before she gets out, she wonders where her purse is. She tries to look for it but to no avail. The date says it’s nowhere in her apartment. The woman goes outside, thinking it’s in her car, but she distinctly remembers bringing it inside. Heading back in, she wonders if her date stole it. She eventually accuses her of stealing it and sees it tucked under her bed.
Eventually, the date reveals her manipulative side, no longer interested in being close to the woman. She says it’s the way of the impundulu. The woman is mad, now, and the date lunges at her, starting a fight. The date has already transformed into an impundulu, one who is fully transformed, and the woman finds her stunning, though she just wants to go home now. She gets struck several times by the date’s attacks, but she realizes that she’s only doing this because she knows that the woman must be strong too. Quickly, the woman gathers her composure and matches the date’s speed, blocking her attacks occasionally. They fight and fight, until the woman lands a kick on her chin, which incapacitates her.
In her last moments, the date laments that she was too arrogant and underestimated the woman. The woman realizes that she must have arranged Beast Finder in order to find other impundulus and kill them while they’re vulnerable. When asked why, the date says that that’s just how it is for them. Before they can talk further, the date succumbs to death. The woman realizes what she must do, so she gets down beside her and drinks her blood. This is her new normal.
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