Pyramus And Thisbe

“How spiteful is the brick set betwixt us?

To let us whisper our endearing words,

To let us seem closer than what is truth,

To pr’vent our love past all that is heard,

Although I’m grateful for this tiny gap

Our love cannot continue on this way,

Held back from you by mere inches of stone

I loathe this circumstance in every day

Why must we be subjected to this pain?

Has love decided to conspire with fate?

Do those mean Erotes not know remorse?

How many hours will we be forced to wait?

Until time has withered our bones to dust?

Until the day we see Thanatos’ face?

The hour where Tantalus quenches his thirst?

Will our freed’m to love, not be vouchsafed?

Our union is disfavoured by our kin,

Why must the folk we cherish adverse us?

And scorn the prospect of Thisbe and I,

Our romance, hated by those whom we trust.

Hear my pleas you cruel Amores up there

Until you end this evil alliance

You have with woe; Free us from your ard’nt spell

Despair and love entangled,

what wicked science,

If not, then please let us embrace just once

For I fear that in a near vespertine

These walls will cease to hide our sweet nothings

And carry them to stray ears in due time

In spite of how it may appear that I

Harbour resent towards my family, I do not, its just

I too, as do most humans alike, seek

To share a pure, mutual enamour

One of which is ocean vast, with Thisbe

One as unrelenting as a clangour

An ardent bond, so strong that when we kiss,

when our swollen loins collide, we alone,

Create stars when our bare bodies embrace,

Skin to skin, our limbs to limb, bone to bone.”

How unpreferable is the circumstance they were in, two lovers, each residing in a family which is sworn in its opposition to the other, and yet through these trivial feuds, through these prohibitions of their admiration the arrows of Eros still retained its potency, and infected them enough to have them justify sharing adversity to their own individual ties. Pyramus the handsome young boy, and Thisbe the gorgeous young lady, both residents of Babylon whom belonged respectfully to a family which scorned one another and nevertheless, the rancour of their kin meant naught to the two, as they still found ways to meet, to speak, to love and often it was they would schedule a tryst; their families were silly to believe mere bans and restrictions could block the streams of passion of which flew throughout their veins, and left through their jaws in the form of pleas, cries, arguments to let the two be together, and of course, words of endearment to each other. Truly, what stronger drive is there then the push given to one when enamoured? Only love could turn one against their own revered kinship, and merely to hold the one whom the yearn for? In confirmation to this, (Pyramus and Thisbe at this point, frustrated by their ties, and with longing that escalated every hour at the fault of the teasing wall between their bodies,) the rules made by their parents were anon to be shattered forever by this drastic measure they rationalised making simply to be together; hereon was the scheming which took place that fateful night.

“Pyramus, oh my dearest, let us leave

Away with our usual plans at night

And instead, let us take ourselves elsewhere

To a place void of our family plights’

For its an injustice on fates behalf,

That we must endure this at the fault,

Of a feud in which we played no part,

A petty one at that? It’s an insult!

Thisbe bespoke and Pyramus thence replied,

A disregardment of us, oh how cruel

How heartless, WE’RE the future of our ties

Ergo, we CAN’T let old feuds rule our lives,

AWAY with yourself rancour and despise!

With the finalising of their decision to flee from their undesirable situation together, both prepared themselves, wary yet giddy, terrified yet excited, they awaited nightfall; it wasn’t long after the sun finally weakened and fell down the sky, only to be replaced by Selene whom with her accomplice (Nyx) would enable Pyramus and Thisbe’s clandestine rendezvous by dressing them in the most efficient camouflage, the darkness of night. Pyramus had suggested they meet under the limbs of a mulberry tree, grand in size and a healthy green; wearing its ivory berries of which hung low and were abundant in amount. At last the agreed upon time arrived for their rendezvous; Thisbe was over punctual and thenceforth her arrival, while looking ahead scouting for a creeping silhouette that could have been her lover, she discerned, assisted by the lucence of Selene, an approaching figure; not one on two legs, but four, not clothed, but furry, and devoid of a mane, but still a cat, a lioness. A frightening sight to see coming your way, and a fright which grew in Thisbe as the beast drew closer, closer enough for one to clearly see the she-lions bloodied maw. Her fierce face was stained by the liquids of her most recent meal, and yet, she still seemed hangry whilst she stepped. Petrified Thisbe, seeing this, and knowing it would be wise to seek cover far from the lioness’ peripheral, bolted of in search of a place to hide. Clueless that amid her panicked sprint, her mantle had by stolen by the breeze, and blown into the vision of the lioness, whom did not hesitate to pounce on the fabric and mangle it between her jaw, smearing the blood of her prey all over its pieces as it ripped. After being satisfied with how she tore it, the cat released the clothing and thence continued her nighttime hunt outside the area. One living being however, left the vicinity, to be replaced by another- this time it was the anticipated person, Pyramus had arrived; in an instant he recognised the torn mantle and saw remnants of this beast’s voyage imbedded in sand. Using the given signs to come to a gauge what took place, Pyramus immediately began to grieve after using the evidence displayed to conclude his Thisbe had been slaughtered by a beast. Whilst holding the pieces of the mantle (pieces he believed were the last of Thisbe) close to his heart, the boy lamented aloud looking to the heavens to roar:

“What have you done you execrable fates,

Has mercy fled your souls with empathy,

To end a young girl’s life so early on?

I curse this act of vicious devilry.

My Thisbe, oh the dread, the sheer horror

For you to die in such an awful way,

Why- WHY, what grave misfortune- was it not

Yet harsh enough to have our love forbade?

No- It is I who should assume the blame,

For it was In MY plan she placed confide,

Therefore, it’s only fair- I too, should die,

This fatal scheme indeed was my contrive.

Forgive my fatal error beloved

And look down hither whilst I pierce my side,

Observe you Gods, devoid of clemency,

And know that love assisted in my death

Rejoice at that whilst you malign,

At last, to you, my partner in ill fate,

My darling Thisbe, know, you’d’ve been my wife

Alas, our kinships have achieved their goal,

Await me Thisbe, sweetheart- in the

Afterlife.”

Thereafter this speech, Pyramus then proceeded to impale his side, just as he vowed, and during the impact his blood spewed from the stabbed area up towards the towering branches of the mulberry tree and onto its fruit, dressing the once ivory berries in a dark crimson hue, and then

Assured his choice was dignified, he fell

Onto the ground, and whilst he bled to death

His fearful Thisbe left concealment, shocked

To find her lover nearing his last breath

“Pyramus! Listen! Can you hear me dear?”

She called his name a thousand times over,

Cradling his waning body In her arms

Pyramus, barely breathing, just saw her,

And

Even through his fading peer, he realised

The grave mistake he’d made to end himself,

For

Before him, sat the girl whom he had mourned,

He died- the falling tears of Thisbe

were the last sensation he felt.

Despondence then, brought forth her wails and cries,

Thence with her lover’s corpse inside her grasp,

She channelled all her dole, distress and pain,

To shout up to the quilted skies so black

“As if we weren’t already burdened then,

As if we weren’t tormented heretofore,

So much misfortune in a tiny span,”

*She weeps- “Why must our love be so deplored?

Towards the end of her wistful jeremiads, Thisbe, deluded by her sadness, searched her mind to find a resolution to this, and in seconds she did. One would not be incorrect to say she wept herself to the edge of oblivion, for only that could justify the decision she had rationalised. After a short silence, spent to cry, she then bespoke these words under the influence of despair,

“I understand, I see what I must do

If life has chose to spite our love, perhaps,

Both our deaths can reconcile this mishap.”

*Thisbe unlatched the dagger from her dead swain’s side, and with it in hand, fresh blood still dripping of its point, she declared

With This-

I shall end this harrowing life of mine,

And-

I ask, that when my blood flies high to stain,

These berries above, once an iv’ry shade

I hope, in crimson is where they’ll remain,

As

A token of this ever-somber hour,

An emblem to remember our demise-

Who knew that love would share a face with death,

With cold remorseless eyes?

Onwards from her sorrowful request, the young lady placed the blades tip under her chest, and thence let her weight force it into her, it immediately punctured her heart. Her pleadings however were not ignored, for though one could argue the Gods were pitiless to allow their situation to reach such a drastic place, Thisbe’s final words did not fall onto deaf ears. Acknowledging this terrible happening, the Gods took heed on her request to eternalise their love- and their death, by keeping the blood-stained berries dressed in a dark red hue, a hue that persists on to this day, a reverence of them both, in remembrance they dawn the colour of their blood. Killed by a dagger of which they placed themselves, but one that was forced into their skin by love, maybe whilst the river Styx enslaved them to its currents, they’d finally be allowed to embrace, in death, in spirit, in the form of a wraith, still

love in deaths face.