A Monsoon's Tale- Part 6
The Queen of Hearts
The Queens, ever unmoving, had never cast their glances at anyone, they performed all their duties calmly and silently. Then, one spring dusk, one of them cast up her dark black lashes and glanced at the Prince. The Prince started. ‘’Great Heavens! I knew them as images— but no, I see this is a woman.’’
The Prince called upon the Son of the Constable and the Son of the Merchant in private and said, ‘’Friends, there is great sweetness in her. This first glance of her black eyes so brightened with new feelings made me see the first glow of dawn. My patience has been rewarded today.’’
His two friends, filled with great curiosity, laughingly asked, ‘’Is it true, Pardner?’’
The unfortunate Queen of Hearts now began to forget all rules. There were frequent transgressions of traditions dictating where she was to be at what time of the day. Sometimes, she would suddenly stand beside the Prince when she was to queue up beside the Knave— in grave, unmoving tones the Knave would say, ‘’Queen, you are mistaken’’. At this, the red cheeks of the Queen of Hearts would grow redder, her calm, unblinking gaze would be lowered. The Prince would answer, ‘’There is no mistake, for from today I am the Knave’’.
Unseen beauty and incredible grace abounded in the newly blossomed feminine heart. Such sweet restlessness in her movements, such flutters of the heart with every glance, such sweet-scented joyful adoration flowing enthusiastically from her entire existence.
Trying to correct this new convict made the all err. The Aces forgot all about acting in accordance to the honours heaped upon them, there remained no distinction between King and Knave and even the Nines and the Tens did not remain unaffected.
The cuckoo of spring had sung many times in this old island, but never had he sung like that before. The seas had always babbled in the same melody, but all these days it had been an announcement of the unsurmountable glory of the ancient rules— now suddenly the seas tried to express their bottomless yearning through light and shadow, gestures and language, just like the universal wave of wild youth stirred by the South Wind.