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"How do you know your husband isn't a monster if he won't let you see him?"
Psyche's ears rang. A typical visit with her sisters turned into a confusing mess. True, her married life wasn't exactly normal. After the oracle of Apollo foretold her marriage to a hideous monster that even the gods fear, she walked down the altar to a funeral march. However, her first meeting with her husband was not one of him devouring her. He brought her to an ethereal palace where many servants attended her. While it is true that her husband and his servants were invisible, they were kind to her and made her feel affection. The affection she wasn't able to experience as regular people worshipped her as Venus on Earth.
Now, Psyche's perfect life with her adoring husband and new pregnancy crumbled in her mind. How could she go back to that life, after what she's been told?
Psyche loved her husband. He was so gentle and loving towards her. But...what if her sisters were right? She loves her husband, but she loves the child in her womb more than life herself. If by some chance her husband was plotting to kill them both, where could she run? She would have to kill him first.
And so that evening, Psyche took a sharp blade and a lantern and approached her husband's bedside, her hand's trembling with anxiety. They stilled as Psyche cast her eyes on her husband for the first time.
He wasn't a hideous monster, he was an ethereally gorgeous man. Mesmerized by his beauty, Psyche leaned in close, only to jerk back when she felt a sharp prick on her hand. She looked to the side and saw arrows, beautifully crafted.
His otherworldly beauty, his arrows. Psyche realized that her husband was none other than Cupid, the god of love. She felt her love for Cupid swell further than possible, not just from the arrows of love. Her husband wasn't a malevolent creature. He told the truth when he said he loved her and their baby. Psyche, assassination plan canceled, went to turn away and go back to bed, when a mysterious lamp oil drop spilled on Cupid's shoulder.
Lamp Oil POV
So this is happening. I am lamp oil. I am alive. How is this real? What is even happening? Do sentient objects count as being alive? If so, do I have a soul? Can I die? What would lamp oil death be like? How am I even thinking about this? I was just some ordinary lamp oil a moment ago. Am I panicking? I am! This is so weird. I can see? Does that mean I have eyes?
Wait...I can only see because lamp oil is being burned. I am lamp oil...I like to see...am I a masochist? Moving from those darkening thoughts, I start to look around at my surroundings, only to catch sight of the best-looking man I have ever seen.
Granted, I don't have anything for comparison since I wasn't alive a moment ago, but this guy is a serious hottie. Hottie...
He's a hottie! I'm hot lamp oil! We belong together! Who cares about existential crises when you've met the love of your life. He's so attractive! Gaaaah! Why didn't sentience come with poet skills? I can't describe his beauty enough! I need to get closer.
With my newfound determination, I use all my strength to slide off the lamp and free-fall onto Hottie's shoulder.
Cupid POV
I awake with a start. My shoulder burns. I look down and see...lamp oil with eyes? Did I accidentally bring objects to life in my sleep again? Honestly...mortals never have to deal with these problems.
Speaking of mortals... I look up and see my beautiful Psyche. She's so precious and...is looking at me? Psyche is looking at me. Psyche has a lamp? And from the glinting metal in one hand, a knife.
Was she...planning on killing me? I know she visited her sisters earlier, but she promised me that she trusted me and wouldn't listen to the advice from her jealous sisters. She...lied? I know our married life is unconventional, as I've hidden my form from her, but I've tried to treat her like a queen. I worked so hard to give us a happy life together, Psyche! Why couldn't you trust me?
For a moment, Psyche and I stared at each other. My eyes burned, and wetness spilled down my face before I fled away from her.
Psyche POV
I've made a horrible mistake.
Author's Note:
The original story of Cupid and Psyche starts with a beautiful mortal princess, the Psyche. Psyche is so stunning that worshippers of Venus, the goddess of love and beauty, stopped going to the temples and started going to see Psyche's legendary beauty. Venus, of course, is enraged that mortals have begun to worship a lowly mortal like Psyche instead of her own divine self. So Venus decides to have Psyche fall in love with a hideous monster. Psyche's father at this time is looking for a husband for Psyche, and he hears about the monster that Venus wants to set Psyche up with.
Venus sends her son, Cupid, to use his love arrows on Psyche, but Cupid falls in love with Psyche at first sight and decides to marry her. Cupid and his servants stay invisible from Psyche because...
However, aside from Venus, Psyche's side of the family also has problems. She has two sisters who were married to old kings in foreign countries, and they are jealous that Psyche lives in a luxurious palace with unearthly riches. They determine that Psyche has married a god and decide to ruin her marriage. The sisters tell Psyche that her husband is a monster that is definitely going to kill her and her unborn child if she doesn't kill him first. Psyche, being naive and trusting her older sisters, listen to their "advice."
I added in the oil perspective because, in the original story, the lamp oil splashes Cupid because Cupid's otherworldly beauty makes the oil want to be closer to him. I decided to create a comedic effect from it.
Bibliography:
Original Story: "Cupid and Psyche" from Apuleius' ancient Roman novel, The Golden Ass, translated into English by Tony Kline. Source.
Image Information: "Psyché et l’Amour endormi" (1636) Painted by Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640). Source.
Hi Rebekah! Your story was very interesting to read. I came into the story not expecting anything and had a open mind and I wasn't disappointed at all. The really interesting piece of your story was the multiple POVs that you had throughout the story made it unique and really fun to read and change POV to POV.
ReplyDeleteHey Rebekah!
ReplyDeleteThis is the first story I have read in the class that has multiple POVs and great job. I hope others take a page from your book because this was a great read. You do a great job writing dialogue, and I think this becomes especially obvious throughout all the different POVs. I think you have a great adjective selection. You use such pretty and vivid descriptive words.