Endling (Kaito x Gakupo)

Chapter 2

Against his wishes, Kaito couldn't return to the museum until a couple of days later. To his annoyance, the records department at campus had some trouble with his paperwork (why they still used actual paper to store important information was a mystery to him). As Kaito tried to sort out the issue, he found himself undeniably anxious to see the fae again. Would the endling be upset with him? Or would he be glad to see Kaito, if only as a diversion from his boredom?

Finally on Thursday afternoon, Kaito was able to visit the museum with a longer, thicker turquoise and silver ribbon in his pocket. He went straight towards the exhibit of the winged fae, walking quickly. However, as soon as he laid eyes on one of the display screens before the cage room, he stopped dead on his tracks.

Evidently, the footage being looped didn't stop with the capture of the endling. On the contrary, the screen displayed the endling kneeling on some kind of low stage in front of the museum, with his arms tied behind his back, a muzzle and a strange leather mask on his head which covered his eyes and the sides of his head, pushing the feathery protrusions backwards. The naturalist was behind him, forcefully extending one of his wings so the crowd around them could see it more clearly. The video then displayed a close-up of a feather, presumably as part of a discussion of their properties.

However, it was the image of the fae on the stage that struck Kaito. It was hard for him to picture how that would feel: tied up, muted, blinded and unable to understand the words of his enemies. Kaito shook his head, trying to dispel the unsettling feeling that suddenly overcame him. He pressed on into the next room, as fast as if someone was pursuing him.

The endling was sitting in the same position as the first time Kaito saw him, hugging his knees with his eyes closed. The room was empty again, except for a grim-looking man in a dark suit. Kaito immediately sensed something off about him: he seemed too serious and businesslike to be in what was essentially a freak-show, disguised as a scientific institution. He stood there, taking notes on his data assistant, and then unenthusiastically snapping pictures of the fae.

The endling opened his eyes and all other thoughts left Kaito's head when their eyes met and the fae smiled. He jumped to his feet in one swift motion, pleasantly surprised. The man in the dark suit did a double take at the sudden change and observed the pair suspiciously as they stood in opposite sides of the bars. Kaito showed the fae his present, smiling apologetically, and the fae's eyes twinkled with joy.

Only after the ribbon went through the chute Kaito noticed the man's strange behavior. He was quickly taking images of the endling from various angles, reminding him oddly of paparazzi. Kaito managed to peek at the man's data assistant right at the moment when he snapped a close-up shot of the fae's scarred arm, before the endling began to tie the new ribbon around it.

Is he some kind of government inspector or something? Kaito wondered, intrigued. The thought of the man slapping the museum owners and the naturalist with a huge fine for mistreating the endling was incredibly appealing.

His work apparently completed, the man simply walked out of the room. Kaito was tempted for a moment to follow him and figure out who he was, but then decided against it. He and the endling had a long afternoon ahead of them, and he wanted to enjoy every second of it.

***

Time passed. As the days went by, Kaito did his best to balance study and his peculiar new friend. At first, he tried to dismiss the latter as a passing interest, but soon there was no denying it: their time together was the highpoint of his daily routine. Perhaps it was the famed charm of the fae, but every single day Kaito ran after classes to the museum, where he spent the rest of the afternoon trying to communicate with the endling. Even when he had an important assignment, he simply carried his laptop with him and sat working beside the cage while the fae watched him curiously.