Her metamorphosis took place at the dinner table.
She abruptly crumpled up, compressing herself into a fat, rounded form
before a light red layer of veins covered her, themselves
being covered by a gorgeous iridescent scaly layer.
I picked up the emerald egg and gave it a quick peck,
to reassure her that I was still there.
Her father chuckled. “Don't worry, she's in there, all right.
Her mother went through the same process, and, well, just look at her.”
His wife hissed in agreement, coiling her tail around him.
I held onto her egg, unsure
whether or not
to put it back down.
“Why so tense? Set her down; she's not going anywhere.
She'll have finished her transformation by tomorrow.”
I put her egg down on the seat
and continued to eat,
savoring the taste
of my own imperfections.

She was born the next day
at the dinner table. The egg cracked and then ceased
to exist, shattered into infinitesimally small bits
by a dragonfly of jade and gold. She buzzed
contentedly as I held her in my arms,
admiring the circuitry in her wings.
I crooned to her
to let her know that I was there.
She brought her head to meet mine.
We connected, man and beyond-man.
I kissed her, savoring
Complex mouthparts, dexterous legs
Lithe exoskeleton, slender antennae
Deep eyes, lofty wings
A scent of perfection to which I could only dream to aspire.

Just me and her now,
man and beyond-man. What was she seeing, thinking
in that body beyond my mere comprehension?
The cybernetic capsule within her head,
seat of her human emotions, that last
Vestige of imperfection in a body
that was above my own. How could I love her any less
knowing that she was destined to surpass me.
But for now, us together
sharing the jointed metamorphosis
of this body of hers, more beautiful than before
a soft, wet, warm thorax
wings ripe with the scent of ambition
A mind built to perceive
A soul meant to dream
A body created to achieve
A destiny within the stars.

She left me the way she entered
in a flash that changed my life
I ate her and took her capsule
Seat of her mind
Seat of her emotions
Seat of her previous imperfection
why
Why did I eat her
what dream did I have
that I would seek to ruin hers?
Does she realize what has happened
Is this a nightmare
this impulse to consume
This horrific imperfection
How do I save her from myself
Join her in the capsule
connect to her mind
Uploaded to her world.
She tasted of everything I wanted to be.

stars. a platform. the sea.
just us. her imperfect body. the one we shared.
what can I tell her
how do i save her dream
she knows
she looks at me and
the virtual ocean in her eyes
the burning of a sun in her heart
she knows and
she still loves me
is this a dream?
despite my imperfection
through the nightmare
the nightmare i created
she still loves me
she was never imperfect
she has always been perfect
she has always been headed for the stars
this is her dream
so this is my dream
she can have my body
metamorphosize and find the stars
i remain in the capsule
stars. platforms. the sea.

Sometimes she visits.
tells me stories of the stars
tells me of the metamorphosized body I once had
and of the stars it visited.
the stars she visited.
They sound beautiful.
I look at the false ocean
and look at the virtual stars
and wonder what might have been
in this dream
what we might have been together
but
she is happy.
the stars are open to her.
this is the dream.
this is my perfection.