Taboo
“I never wanted to come here in the first place!” roared Iris, as she burst into her substitute bedroom in a wild rage, slamming the door behind her with such vigour the fragile cottage seemed to tremor in fear. Tears began to drown her eyes as she leant against the wall. Iris released a pitiful sob as she slid down to the ground; where she sat hugging her legs to her chest, her head buried within her knees. And there Iris cried, all alone, in the dark unfamiliar room.
Iris and her aunt did not get off to the best of starts. Bella’s effectively schizophrenic behaviour can appear uncouth to many, Iris included. At first her aunt appeared nice enough, just an innocent old lady living in a cottage in the woods by herself. But, with a mention of that picture, her façade soon liquefied…
As Bella hauled Iris over her threshold, an assault of flowery aromas bombarded her senses. The concoction seemed spicy, sweet and fresh all at once; the fragrance tickling Iris’s nose as she inhaled the intoxicating air. It was obvious why the atmosphere was so alive with the floral scents, for everywhere Iris looked were plants of all colours and varieties: roses of every colour potted around the tables, vines with purple and yellow flowers crawled their way around the beams of the cottage, large bush like plants were placed in the corners of the room, all species of plant you could imagine occupied the small house. “Wow!” breathed Iris as she surveyed the area.
Apart from the dense forest which filled interior, the cottage looked just as cosy on the inside as it did from the out. To Iris’s left was a small living room: a log fire burned at the back of the room, casting its smouldering red light and warmth throughout the base of the cottage. Iris counted three arm chairs and a rocking chair in front of the fireplace, with a well-worn circular rug in the centre. To her right was an equally small kitchen and dining room. A compact wood burning stove was seen to be stationed there, with a few shelves, working counters, sink, cooling cupboard and a dining table with four chairs surrounding it. It was clear that Bella had eluded the technical advances of electricity and heating, but that added to the charm of the property. Installing industrial amenities would have destroyed the comfortable, rural ambiance.
Directly opposite Iris was a staircase, cutting through the centre of the cottage, dividing the living room and kitchen. Bella floated over to the stairs and extended her arm out towards the banister. Tanis slipped off Bella’s arm and twisted her way along the wood. “Welcome to my humble home Iris, I hope you like plants as much as I do! Otherwise you might find the next two weeks rather uncomfortable,” chuckled her aunt. “Unfortunately I have no television or phone, but I’m sure you can survive two weeks without them.”
“What! No tele or phone?!” exclaimed Iris, discussed at the notion of being cut off from modern civilisation for two weeks. “How am I supposed to live in this place without some entertainment?”
“I would thank you not to insult my life style if you please,” rebuked Bella. “Society and I do not exactly get on, so why should I grace it by becoming another zombie glued to a screen for hours upon end? People waste their lives in front of the television; they become so blind that reality and fiction become blurred. The world is a wonderful place Iris; if you just open your eyes for once in your life I am sure you would be surprised at what you will discover. Now, would you like a cup of tea dear?” Bella’s tone seemed to shift from stern to placid in a matter of words. It was as if she was endeavouring to suppress an inner rage buried deep within her.
Iris walked around the living room, occupying herself while her aunt was making the tea. The red glow of the fire gently kissed the walls of the room, creating fading shadows dripping onto the floor. The mixture of the heat and low light made Iris sleepy as she inspected the photographs decorating the walls. Every one of the pictures were constructed of black and white film, reflecting their age. Mostly the photographs were of plants or woodland. “The woman is obsessed!” whispered Iris under her breath.
As Iris fleetingly glanced at the field of film, one odd picture caught her eye in particular. It was small portrait, rectangular in shape; strangely, the only print to have people as the subject, rather than foliage. Five people posed in the photograph, positioned with two small girls at the front, a man and a woman behind and to the side of either girl, and another woman in the middle at the very back. The image gave the impression of a family portrait; everyone looked happy, with their beaming grins animating the scene. Iris inspected the photograph closer, when she realised who one of subjects were; for the woman placed at the back to the middle resembled her aunt Bella! At shallow exploration, Iris did not detect her aunt in the photograph, as her youth disguised her identity, but the factor which concreted Iris’s speculation was the snake looped around Bella’s arm. Only her aunt would carry around a snake with her at all times! Her face was smooth and youthful. Life seemed to overflow from her features, with a smile so wide that it drowned out all others.
Another oddity which Iris spied was that all the other people in the photo seemed to have an animal with them also. The girl in the front left had a small puppy in her arms, the girl next to her -seemingly twins as they looked so alike- had a ferret curled around her shoulders, the woman on the left was cradling a spider, whilst the man on the right had a petit sparrow perched on top of his shoulder. It was indeed an unusual capturing of events!
Bella floated silently into the room, laden with a tray containing a tea pot, two cups and some oat biscuits; everywhere Bella walked, she looked as if to glide above the ground with incredible ease, silent as the clouds drifting across the sky.
Her features winced at the sight of Iris viewing the peculiar picture. Iris turned around at the sound of her aunt placing the tray down, seemingly unaware of her aunt’s entrance prior. Iris asked, “Aunt Bella, who is in this picture?” Bella continued to prepare the beverage, ostensibly evading the question.
“Oh that old thing? Just something I found in the attic when I moved in here. It looked nice so I thought I would keep it.”
“But isn't that you in the picture? I mean, that snake looks like Tanis,” pursued Iris.
“No, don’t be silly! There is many a snake that looks like Tanis. She isn't the only snake of her species in the world!”
Iris could sense her aunt was attempting to conceal something, “But the woman does look like you… Your keeping something from me, aren't you?”
Bella’s face darkened, “There are some things that people do not want to share Iris, it is best not to go on about it-“
“But I want to know! I'm not a little kid any more Tell me now!” Iris began to revert back to an immature state: she crossed her arms in a defensive position and stamped her feet in the ground.
“Listen child,” Bella ceased in preparing the tea and drifted over to Iris, her voice deepening with a mixture of annoyance and anger. “If I do not wish to tell you something I won’t. You may think you are old enough to understand the complexities of the world but you are very, very wrong. You may think that you are no longer a child, but you are. And if you think that by throwing a tantrum you will get your own way, you are severely wrong. Now sit down, drink your tea and we will not discuss this topic any longer.”
Iris’s face flared into a burning red, “How dare you talk to me like that you stupid old woman! No one ever talks to me like that! Now tell me about the picture, now!” Something shattered deep within Bella. The rage she controlled previous was now boiling into an overbearing force, easily defeating the strongest of wills. Her gentle, calm nature was now consumed by pure fury. She raised her hand and slapped Iris around her left cheek; the sound of the contact echoing throughout the cottage. As soon as Bella’s hand met with Iris’s cheek the rage within Bella seemed to dissolve instantly, leaving regret in its wake. “I'm so sorry!” whispered Bella, shocked at her own actions. Iris looked back at her aunt in utter reverence. She never thought that Bella would be capable of such actions! The timid, floaty woman that Iris once knew was no more. Here stood authority and challenge to the immature Juvenal. Iris pushed past her aunt, fleeing upstairs to find sanctuary. “Dear, I'm sorry!” bellowed Bella after Iris.
Iris continued her weeping for many minutes. No one- apart from her mother- had ever dared to talk to Iris in such a manner, let alone hit her! Iris felt entirely alone in the cottage. She had attempted to contact Naomi, but her efforts failed when she realised that there was not mobile reception in which to send a message or call.
Iris was so engrossed within her misery that she did not even notice the cat which stood on the windowsill. The window to Iris’s room had been left wide open, allowing the animal to enter the cottage with ease. It was probably disturbed by Iris’s din and wanted to see the source of the wailing.
It was a majestic creature standing pound upon the windowsill. Its short white fur shimmered in the pale light of the moon. It had a muscular body, with a thin tail that flicked back and forth as if annoyed. Its eyes were spellbinding, glistening yellow; like two candles flickering in the night. But the most prominent feature of the cat was its markings. The creature was almost completely white, apart from the strange black line that commenced in between its ears, and continued in a straight line, discontinuing at its nose. It was like an odd kind of birth mark.
The cat stood staring at Iris for a while, as if it was conjuring a plot. After a few minutes, it leapt off the windowsill and landed elegantly upon the bed. It stooped frozen, its tail erect, waiting to see if Iris had detected the cat’s movements. Satisfied that she had not, the cat slickly jumped off the bed, landing next to the crying girl. Again, Iris failed to notice the cat! The animal looked to shake its head in amazement; as if to say: "how can one human be so oblivious!" The cat walked around Iris and brushed its tail along her leg. Iris lifted her head, startled. “Oh! I didn't know Bella had a cat as well! Hello there kitty. You come to keep me company?” The cat did not respond, and just sat on the floor inspecting Iris. “You’re a strange looking thing aren't you? All white then that one streak of black?” Iris stretched out her hand to stroke the cats head. But just like her aunt, the cat seemed to transpire into a fit of anger. Before Iris touched the animal it hissed in displeasure, bearing its sharp fangs. It then scratched Iris’s hand away before leaping off the floor, onto the bed and out of the window, disappearing into the dark. Iris sat bewildered; unsure of the event that just transpired. She looked down at her hand to find her knuckles bleeding from the cat’s assault. It stung greatly as the blood exuded from the wound.
Iris arose from the floor and walked over to the window from where the cat made its departure. A slight refreshing breeze nipped at her face as she gazed out into the world: the moon floated brilliantly in the middle of the blackened sky; its silver radiance casting a mystifying spell over the forest below. The expanse was unspoilt be any clouds, allowing the moon to shine unhindered. To the left of Iris sat New Bud village. A few lights still remained, shining like stars. The village’s serene atmosphere calmed Iris as she shut the window.
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