| The
Leo poem is about 11 pages long, it is a lesson in astrology
itself - well worth the time.
Leo Epic by
Rudy Mervin
Fixed on his fiery throne
The center of his domain
Sign of Royalty, and Gifts.
Romantic, with pageantry.
Representing the Grand Trine.
In his past is Cancer,
Sitting in a rocking chair
Sitting in a rocking chair
Nurturing her future
Which is Leo.
Cancer, secure behind four walls
Which Leo expands into the homeland.
Leo, the child and the fulfillment
Of Cancer.
Leo, the Sign of Children
Of a new kind of home.
The future of Leo is Virgo,
Bent over his forge
Fashioning with his own hands
That which Leo
Can only conceive of.
Virgo, the Sign
Where Leo learns to serve.
Virgo, where Leo's pride
Is humbled by his circumstance
So that he may come to understand
His subjects.
Opposing Leo
Is Aquarius, with the people
Massed behind him.
Aquarius, who calls for democracy
Wherein each may have a small voice
In the destiny of the nation.
Aquarius, who can call to revolution
With the rallying voice of Reason
And speak with silvery words of the Utopia
Where all may have an equal share,
Leo and Aquarius,
One fixed in Command,
And the other fixed in his ideals
Of brotherhood,
Must bend or break.
If they effect a compromise,
The Divine Right
Is reduced to a constitutional Right,
And the King will represent the People
And not himself
And his ultimate authority
Will derive from the people
And not from a Divinity
Who told his disciples to separate
The interests of Caesar and God...
If Leo vanquishes Aquarius,
He must vanquish the people,
And to vanquish the people
He must control their voices
And block up their ears
For truth always appears
Where many gather
In the form of Aquarius
Who pours the water of Enlightenment
Upon the burdened brows of his brothers
Awakening them to the possibilities
Of Reform.
When Leo summons Aquarius before him
And offers enlightened compromise
Wherein each may have what he needs
And not just what he desires
He displays the greatest attributes of kingship.
And when Aquarius
Answers with the will of the people
In moderation
And does not throw down the gauntlet
Of Revolution
Before considering the true interests
Of his brothers,
Then Aquarius serves the ideals of Brotherhood.
Crossing the Royal Highway
Which leads to the Meeting House
Of the People
Where Leo is counseled
In partnership with Aquarius
Is another road at right angles.
This road represents Taurus and Scorpio.
The road to Taurus
Wends its way through broad valleys
Ripe with Grain and Cattle
And finishes at the homely farmstead
Of that obstinate peasant
Who in prosperity
Blocks his ears to the entreaties
Of his brothers
Because he finds it hard
To share his possessions.
But when Leo excercises Tyranny
And humbles the peasant into poverty,
Then he resists the Royal Command
And joins the Secret Society of Scorpio,
Or opens his ears to the ideals of Aquarius
So that he may recover
What Royal corruption and greed
Took as its own.
The road to Scorpio
winds its way
Through dark forests
And steaming swamps
Into narrow cul de sacs
Where the unwary
May be trapped by Highwaymen
And every part of that road
Offers the possibility of death
By secret means, and the unknown grave.
If one survives the secret traps
And the attacks from ambush
One eventually finds himself
Traversing the Underground Maze
Which is the real domain
Of Scorpio.
To safely travel through
The Land of Death, and Transformation
One must attach to his waist
The silver cord of Life
So that he may safely return
To his physical body,
For Pluto, who rules the land of Scorpio,
Rules the center of the Earth,
And one may not pass to the center
In material presence.
Leo is limited most greatly
In his Royal Mandate
By the opposition of humanitarian ideals,
By the obstinacy and resistance to change
Of his royal subjects,
And by conspiracy, and intrigue
And death through assassination.
Leo forms a Grand Trine in Fire
With Aries and Sagittarius.
These are his natural allies
Whom he must enlist to his cause
So that his rule will be wise and enlightened.
Aries, the soldier and headstrong general
Who will risk his life
In adventurous combat
And drives forward, head down
To smash through resistance to his king.
Aries, whose sword enforces the King's Peace
So that Taurus may cultivate in safety
And Cancer's home be secure
So that Gemini may carry on his trade
And Virgo practice his craft.
Aries, the King's policeman
Serves the law of Libra
By bringing transgressors to justice, And guards them in the
prisons of Pisces.
He defends, as the law requires
The free speech of Aquarius
And reluctantly fills out the forms
Demanded by Capricorn.
Sagittarius
Takes the wisdom he learned as a young man
Travelling to foreign lands
And brings it back to his nation
So that his people will benefit
Through higher knowledge
And understanding,
And counsels his King
With the wisdom he has earned ,
And his King, if he opens his ears to Sagittarius,
Will be an enlightened ruler
Who will establish instituions of Higher Learning
Where will be taught Philosophy
And other great things.
Leo needs the knowledge
Of the Traveller to distant countries
The judgement of the Philosopher
And the wisdom of the Sage
To rule his kingdom
With true nobility and justice.
Sextiling Leo
Is Gemini and Libra.
The footloose Merchant
Promotes prosperity through Trade
So that Taurus may have the tools
Crafted by Virgo
Which he pays for through the grain he grows
And Gemini trades this for lumber
Fashioned by Cancer
And spreads the news throughout the Kingdom
And his gossip is gleaned by Leo
For the information he needs
To make his rule secure.
And as for Libra
The King must deliver justice
And only Libra can make everything seem fair
And even-handed.
And it is Libra whose art
Praises the King's reign
And gains glory for the nation.
Capricorn and Pisces
Are Quincunx to Leo.
Capricorn is irritating to Leo,
Because he is the only one who can
Organize Leo's bureaucracy,
And Leo recognizes him as a necessary evil.
Capricorn's ambition is threatening
Because he knows Leo's weak points,
And Leo may command
But in most cases, it is Capricorn
Who must execute those commands.
Leo doesn't know all the right buttons to push.
He just has a few big buttons, and then it
Is up to the Big Buttons to push all the little buttons.
Pisces irritates
Because Leo suspects
Pisces is another kind of King.
Here is Leo, footloose and inconsequential
Hand on violin, rather than sceptre,
Representing Faith
Rather than power and command.
Here is the achilles heel of Leo
Religion, and the allegiance
To the King of Kings
The raising of humility
Over Royal Pride
And compassion over pity.
Pisces is the ocean of Space
And Leo is the Sun,
And the commands of Leo
Pass through Pisces
Like the rays of the Sun
Pass through Space
-Without effect.
But lest one think
That Leo is all politics
Even the King is just a man
After all, and like all of the Signs
There is the archetype,
And there is the Man
And there is the woman,
And not all Leos are kings
And Queens.
Let them speak for themselves.
LEO, THE MAN
We are his Royal Majesty
And stride with hauteur and pride
Through long corridors
And ride down the Royal Road
In a chariot pulled by a brace of lions.
We hold the reins in our left hand
And wave at the adoring crowds with our right,
Protected by our brother in fire
In shield and sword
From any insult to their lord.
I am glad that we are a "We,"
Because otherwise, our solitary person
Might have a tendency to loneliness
-For though we be always with people,
We are unique.
There is only one king.
We are sent to the nation
Like God sent His Son to humanity
-One for the smaller purpose
And the other for the Greater Purpose
But in the end,
Each must play out his role.
And I am thankful
It is not I who must die on the cross,
And when we are lonely
It comforts us to think
That the King of Kings
Must be loneliest of all.
But, we are not often lonely.
We have our queen
This lioness who purrs contentedly
At our side
And issues commands
As imperious as our own.
She meets fire with fire
And many have been the royal battles.
And we have a mistress....
The Lady Scorpio
Who bore my eldest son
In secret
-A kind of calculation
That he would sometime be king.
The Lady Scorpio
Is dark and alluring
And voluptuous with sex.
She has thick eyebrows
And full lips.
Her eyes are dark and magnetic
And she is a great strategist
Who has helped us mightily
In time of war
By questioning motives
And playing devil's advocate.
She can pierce to the core
The purpose and motives
Of those who indulge in palace intrigue.
I do not question her loyalty
For I have been gnerous
And would legitimize
My eldest son if it were possible.
But that would cause problems.
Two years after
Lady Scorpio bore my eldest,
My queen bore a son,
And he is a true Leo like me.
Ah, rule is so complicated,
And I would, if I could,
Labour like Taurus
And watch my grain grow
With not a care in the world.
The beauty of the land
Is lost to that obstinate peasant.
There is emnity
Between the Lady Scorpio
And my wife, the queen.
My queen dislikes the subtle intrigue
And ruthless use of influence
Of the Scorpionic clans,
And I fear she suspects and attraction
On my part towards that lady.
But even if she knew,
She would not admit it,
For as long as she remains innocent
She denies that knowledge legitimacy.
To admit that Lady Scorpio
Had seduced her mate
Would bring her to the level
Of Queen's opponent,
And unfortunately, one's opponent
Is perceived as being level with oneself
Rather than below.
Knowing my queen,
She would rather tolerate the Lady Scorpio
In obscurity
Than give her the advantage of equality.
So, my secret is safe for now.
As for the Lady Scorpio's uncle
And all of their people in general,
They cannot be trusted
Escept in special cases
As Secret Agents paid well
For their information
And the less of authority they have
The better.
I am convinced that those rumours
Circulating about my Queen's infidelity
Can be attributed to that snake,
The youngest Prince of Scorpio,
Who likes not our Light
Exposing his nefarious schemes,
And it is lucky for me
That the Aquarius and Taurus clans
Who can sometimes be a pain
In my own side,
Distrust Scorpio as much as I do.
They are unlikely allies
And not easily handled
Though Aquarius will compromise
If she perceives it in the interest
Of the people,
And Taurus can be bought off
By prosperity,
And both would revolt
Before the High Prince of Scorpio
Could take my place.
Of course,
Neither Aries nor Gemini
Would serve willingly
Under Scorpio rule.
Aries, my brother-at-arms
Would fight for me to the death,
And Gemini perceives something to fear
Perhaps, an intellect deeper than his own,
Though not as quick.
'Tis plain that Gemini feels vulnerable,
And being an intellectual,
He is more valuable
In the Ministry of Truth,
Than on the Field,
Sword in hand.
As for the lands of Scorpio,
No king alive
Has paid them a visit
Except the King of Kings
And He stayed no longer
Than three days.
Although, there is an old legend
Or myth, if you will
That Scorpio once ruled the kingdom
And great lizards ruled the earth.
They were destroyed by a shifting of the Poles,
And as the Poles shifted
To a new balance
The rulership went to Libra
And Scorpio was brought before the Law
By his successors
Who weighed the pros and cons
And after splitting many fine hairs
Decided in favour of banishment
(Being half-way between death and exoneration)
And Scorpio was sent
To the least favourable of lands,
Where you cannot plow a straight furrow
And where the serpent, and scorpion
And only occasionally the eagle
Whose vision can penetrate
Through the hardiest camouflage,
Rule that land.
Other than the eagle
Most of the birds are bats
Whose blood-sucking propensities
Fit the princes of that land
Very well.
It is said they sleep with serpents,
Or so Gemini told me
-Though not all that he says
Is dependable, for sometimes
He confuses rumour with fact.
However, I wouldn't contradict him
Or expose him for a liar,
As these kinds of rumours
Block Scorpio's challenge to my rule.
It is better to let Gemini
Fight for my throne with his words
Than to go out with Aries
And in fire and sword
Disperse those whom Scorpio
Has persuaded to his cause.
However, not all in my life is politics.
I am known as a great romantic
Able to sweep a lady off her feet
-As I did with the daughter
Of my court Astrologer
Who is an Aquarius.
He did, she said,
Offer her clear-minded counsel
And seemed to know exactly
What was going on
Despite being so absent-minded
That he forgets the supper hour
And generally so vague
As to be unaware of an earthquake.
And this actually happened
As he was reading my stars
Before an important battle
-And there was an earthquake
A mighty shaking
And a great scurrying about
Of servants, and screams and shouts
And terrible fear
That the palace would come down
About our heads
And that vague fool Aquarius
Just continued droning on
Totally engrossed in my stars
And I must sit there as wello,
Listening to him
Lest my flight out of danger's way
Make him seem more cool-headed than I.
And though, with anyone else
I would have rushed to safety
Hand in hand,
I had to sit there with Aquarius,
He fixed in obliviousness
And I fixed on my throne
In terrified pride.
And well it was that I stayed,
For the palace did not come tumbling down.
And when, in the great silence
At the end of the shaking
I gathered my wits and said,
"What do you make of that?"
He looked up
As if awake for the first time
And said."Force Five or thereabouts,
Not enough to do more
Than raise a lot of dust
And break a bit of crockery.
Certainly nothing to be disturbed at here.
The servants will set things aright
Soon enough, in the palace."
He looked down
As if to begin my horoscope again
And I interjected - "You weren't afraid?"
He looked at me, puzzled.
"It was just a little quake.
Nothing to get excited about."
"But how did you know," I asked.
"That this would not be a greater quake,
And that there would not be real danger?"
"Well." He said.
"I am a son of Uranus
Who causes quakes
Therefore, I just know.
Cannot you, a son of the Sun
Feel his warmth?"
"Now, as to the battle.
With Uranus at the midheaven
Trining your Sun,
And with the omen of an earthquake
Which had not the strength
To shake you from your throne
You will win this battle.
'Tis a very good thing." He slyly added.
"That you did not run from the quake
Else you might find yourself
Fleeing the battle.
The good omen, in this case
Depended on your steadfastness
And the outcome of the battle
Will depend on the same."
And so it went.
There was a point in the battle
That my confidence was shaken
And it seemed to go against us,
And my warriors looked to me
For reassurance.
Then I remembered the calmness
And the words of Aquarius
Who seemed always to oppose me.
And I fixed the point of my purpose.
A ray of sudden sunlight
Piercing through overhanging clouds
Glanced off my lance
Into the eyes of my enemy
Who looked away.
I shouted to my Standard Bearer.
"See how the Light of your Sovereign
Blinds the Enemy!
This is the Omen of Victory!"
It was repeated down the Lines
And when the attack came
We were steadfast,
And when the enemy fell back,
We followed them to Victory.
As I was saying,
I wished to take the daughter of Aquarius
As my mistress.
At first,
She did not seem really beautiful,
And then, day by day
Her beauty seemed to blossom
And she looked into my eyes
Not seductively, as Scorpio,
Or boldly, as Aries,
Nor with that sense of personal dignity
As does my own Lioness,
But this daughter of Aquarius
Looked into my eyes
With knowledge
As though she knew my soul,
And she laughed at my Royal Commands
As if I were a demanding child
And issued her own commands
In an imitation of my voice.,
And somehow, we were equals.
She liked the warmth of the Sun
And I was entranced
By the independence and unpredictability
Of Uranus.
Well, what could I do to call her bluff?
Cut off her head?
She was as exasperating as her father
Who popped up without Royal appointments
And disappeared as suddenly
Without Royal leave
Or even a goodbye
And would take up conversations
Where he left off the month before
But could not remember what he ate
Ten minutes ago.
With Aquarius, one never knows
If he is wise
Or a fool.
Or perhaps, he is a wise fool,
If there be such a thing.
Oh, that Lady Aquarius!
Her emotional detachment
Became a challenge to me,
And then, an obsession.
Yes I, the great romantic
Who broke hearts without knowing
-It's true - many young ladies
Took their own lives when I married.
I realized then, that I must give comfort.
It is a Royal Duty.
I asked Aquarius for her comfort
That I did not throw my life hopelessly away,
For now I was her subject
And to save my life
I must have her love.
"My love? Yes, my lord,
You shall have my love."
She impulsively kissed my cheek
And avoided my embrace.
"I am Aquarius - my love is platonic."
She smiled at me
And mocked me with a curtsy
And was gone.
I was furious
And was kicking the throne
In utter privacy
With only the servants and guards present
When a Page bowed before me
With a message.
The Lady Scorpio asked that
I take a certain route
On my way to the Round Table
As it would give us a moment of privacy
In the Garden of Little Bells.
Our son wished a favour.
Ah, yes. There are Affairs of State
-And I went to be dressed.
Afterwards, I directed my guards
And took the alternate route.
On the way
Someone had mounted a telescope
And some of the palace servants
Were vying for a view.
They scattered when the saw me
With hasty bows and scrapes
As if they had been caught
With their hands in the wrong pockets,
And my curiosity was piqued.
I looked through the glass
And realized I was looking
Through the window of the Star Tower
Where the father of Aquarius
Cast his horoscopes,
And there he was
Facing me
-In a passionate embrace
With my Queen!
Her back was to me, but it was her gown
And her golden locks
Cascading down that back.
They broke apart - he wild-eyed
Shouting something at her so earnestly
I almost expected to hear him,
But the glass
Only magnified my sight.
In my shock
I looked at the distant tower,
And could see nothing.
I bent my eye to the glass
And saw her in his arms
And that was enough.
I took the telescope
And marked where it had been
And handed it to one of the guards
So that no one else might see
The shame of my Queen.
I ordered the guard to take note
Of those who had been peering
Through that cursed instrument,
And to find, if possible, the owner.
My heart was frozen in sorrow
And my mind was in shock
So that I did not see
The Garden of Little Bells
And the Round Table
Deliberated without me.
I went to my private garden
And sat before the pool
Unmindful of the Sun's play
On the glistening water
And thought, and thought, and thought
And came up with nothing
But the embrace - over and over.
In the evening
I went to her quarters
Finding her at cards
With her lady-in-waiting.
The Lady Gemini
Was a winner in any other company
And a tactful loser
At least some of the time
To remain
My Queen's best friend.
She met me with a curtsy
At the door
And took my elbow
In her familiar hand
Speaking quietly a warning
In my ear.
"Milady is not in a very good humour.
If you didn't bring flowers
You had best keep it short.
I'll be in the other room
In case she has to be restrained."
That's Gemini, always making jokes.
Bad humour. She hasn't seen bad humour.
I watched her exit the room.
From the back,
She had an uncanny resemblance
To the Queen,
But the glare I was met with
Had a power
That banished any hint of similarity.
I glared back at her
-The embrace still overshadowing.
"Well, what have you been up to today?"
We both said simultaneously.
I tried again.
"Nothing good, I'm sure."
Again, simultaneously.
Gemini poked her head in the door.
"Now, say together. I love you."
We both sniffed, loudly.
"My love is not in question."
Said both of us.
"I am very angry." Said my Queen.
I have made four appointments this month
With that useless star-gazer.
He doesn't keep those appointments.
Instead, he keeps other appointments.
Other appointments,"
She looked at me significantly.
"With people of much lower rank.
Even....commoners."
"Oh well." I said.
"Without commoners
We'd have no servants
-Nobody to tax
-Nobody to grow the grain,
Or empty the chamber pots.
Commoners are important too, you know."
My appointments are important.
My appointments are more important
Than any commoner
Even if I have to empty
My own chamber pot.
My appointments are more important
Than any Stargazer
Who thinks his Queen can be kept waiting.
If I were King here,
I would certainly not allow
The mother of my heir
To be insulted.
That you do so, indicates
Weakness of character.
No, do not hesitate to defent yourself."
She over-rode my attempted interjection.
"It is only your Queen, after all.
You can defent yourself against your Queen,
But you can't defend your Queen against insults
Delivered by common-born rogues
Who have captivated your mind
With their futuristic visions."
"Oh." I answered.
"You want him punished?
For not paying you the respect
Due your station?"
"I want something done." She replied
"This man gets away with entirely too much.
He makes a mockery of convention.
He assumes an equality that is out of touch
With reality.
He sets a bad example."
I snapped my fingers.
"Yes, Milady, you are absolutely right.
You will certainly be proud
Of what I am going to.
Well, must be off.
Affairs of State are pressing."
I backed out with a deep bow,
Disguising my bitter elation
At the answer to my problem.
I went to the Throne Room
The very next morning
And told Capricorn,
Who was my Lord Chamberlain
To have Aquarius the Astrologer arrested
And brought before me in three days
For judgement.
"Aquarius? Arrested?
What now....what charges?"
Capricorn's mouth stayed open
"Gravely insulted the Queen.
Terrible. Terrible. She feels betrayed.
I have to do something.
She is quite distraught.
I have no idea what he did....
It was too terrible for her to divulge.
She will no doubt testify
When the time comes."
"Yes Milord. Your Majesty.
But if I may offer a little advice...."
He paused significantly.
"Well. Speak up."
He was always so damned slow
In his speech.
I waited impatiently for his thoughts
To begin to activate his tongue.
"I agree, Milord. Your Majesty.
Aquarius can seem insulting to those of us
-like yourself, myself, who insist on respect.
However, I am convinced
It is his upbringing at fault.
He did not have a strong father image.
He would be a different man
If he had had a father like myself,
Who was prepared to be firm.
Instead, he was apprenticed to some old milksop
-A Gemini, who bent the truth every which way,
And filled his head with unlikely aspirations.
Astrology has no logical basis.
You know that as well as I do.
The world is logical. Aquarius is not.
Anyway, it is going to take a lot longer
Than three days."
"What are you telling me?
That you want to be replaced?
You aren't the only Capricorn.
If I say three days, it's three days,
Unless you want to join Aquarius
In his cell!"
"I'm sorry Sir. I didn't make the rules.
Nor can I bend them, even in honest service
To Yourself. The power lies elsewhere.
Your Grandfather acceded to a court system
That nullifies privilege.
If we rush it through - give it priority....
-Three months. Murders take years."
"Alright, Capricorn.
Let's do something else.
Another approach.
Have him arrested. He can rot
In gaol waiting for his trial date."
"I'm sorry Sir. Your Majesty.
He would have a constitutional right
To post a bond
In liew of being confined
Until the trial date.
And then, he would have to come
Before a judge,
And the charge be a matter of law.
He won't rot."
"Capricorn, this is a serious charge,
And I'm very serious about it.
I seriously think you need to do
Some serious thought,
Perhaps consult Aquarius on your future,
Or the logic of allowing criminal insults
To your sovereign Queen.
You have your position.
You can benefit from my friendship.
You need to think of other avenues
Which will bring justice
To your Sovereign Queen."
Capricorn bowed. "Yes, your Majesty.
I will do my best.
Perhaps if we made his bond very expensive.
I will see what can be done.
I can't promise anything,
But I will....try."
"Yes, you do whatever is necessary.
Keep him confined. You'll be well rewarded.
The Crown still has some powers."
I cursed my Grandfather for his weakness.
A strong King would not have tied the hands
Of his heirs.
No wonder the kingdom was in such a state.
Murderers take years? I was astonished.
I could see there was much I didn't know
About the lives of my subjects.
I directed my guards to accompany me
To the quarters of my Queen
Where I granted her an interview.
"Milord. I am honoured.
Two visits in two days.
Ten more minutes....
I will make it special.
Perhaps a little heart on my calendar.
You must be obsessed with me.
So much time
From someone so busy.
Gemini! Quickly! Turn back the covers!
We have eight minutes left.
Three times as much as we need!"
"Yes." I answered. "I have
noticed
You need less and less of my time.
Once, we gloried in each other.
Now, I come to hear Gemini's jokes.
However, I do have news
That even you could appreciate.
If your memory could go as far back
As yesterday, perhaps you could find Myself
Amongst your myriad appointments.
We talked of someone
Who commited the heinous crime of disrespect
To your Sacred Self.
I have solved your problem.
Aquarius will be charged, tried,
And beheaded.
You were right. I cannot allow
Insult to my Queen.
It is time that Royalty rebelled.
No longer shall we put up with disrespect.
Things are agoing to change around here!"
"What? What did you do? Beheading?
What are you talking about?
Disrespect isn't beheadable!"
"That's what the democrats think.
That's what they've led you to believe.
That's what I thought.
I was wrong. Kings have beheaded
Throughout history.
We're still in history."
"History - herstory - these are modern
times.
You just don't go around beheading.
You can't behead Aquarius."
"It is the punishment meted out
For disrespect to the Sovereign.
I looked it up." I lied.
"Looked it up? Where?"
"In history. Not herstory. History.
As in History of Man. Lots of beheading."
For once, my Queen seemed speechless,
As though events happened
Too quickly for words,
And I looked forward
To the next three days
With anticipation.
The first to request an audience
Was the Lady Aquarius
And when she was turned away from my door,
She burst in anyway,
As I had fully expected.
"I'm sorry." I said.
"That you have no appointment.
As you know,
It would be undemocratic
Of me to give you preference
Over others who have waited long
For important matters to be resolved."
White-faced, and eyes glittering with anger
She spoke evenly and quietly.
"Why has my father been arrested?
How can this profit you?"
"Oh." I replied blandly.
"There is no profit
In losing my Astrologer.
But this is a matter of justice,
Of charges brought by the Queen,
And if he be innocent
He shall suffer no harm.
But if he be guilty,
It would not be right that
He escape the justice
Which would be meted out
To the common man."
"And what." She asked.
"Are the charges?"
"For that." I answered.
"You must ask the Queen,
For she has complained."
"She has complained about what?"
"I forgot to ask.
You know. Like you forget to show up
For Royal Appointments,
Leaving me twiddling my thumbs
When I should be attending
Affairs of State. Yes, I forgot to ask."
"Oh, you lay claim to absent-mindedness.
My father is not the only one, then.
And you've agreed to judge a case
You know nothing about?"
"The Queen has brought the charges.
I am not involved
Except to hear them."
"Well, I have been to the Chancellor,
And he said charges were pending,
But he seemed to know nothing more.
You don't know, which is a likely story,
And Capricorn doesn't know,
And Gemini would only pretend to know,
So, who can I ask? Scorpio?
I don't know why
You won't deal fairly with me.
There is a misunderstanding here
Which should be cleared up
Before it goes too far,
Or the result may shake your throne
Worse than that last earthquake.
Well, I shall go to see the Queen
Who presumably won't be as absent-minded
As you. And let me tell you...."
She looked squarely at me.
"She'd better have a good story!"
I debated sending a spy
To report on the conversation
Between the Lady Aquarius and my Queen,
But I had no chance,
For the Lady Scorpio somehow
Bumped into me in the hallway,
And I wondered which of her rivals
She would support.
Would it be the Queen who blocked her,
Or Aquarius who disapproved of her.
I wondered about the telescope,
But how could she time everything
So that I would be there
At the telescope
At exactlty the time the embrace
Took place?
This was beyond even my powers.
"My Lord." She whispered,
Her hand stroking my forearm.
"You have not visited me for a long time.
Come tonight. I have important matters to discuss
Concerning the current crisis.
I have heard..." She paused weightily.
"That the charges are a complete fabrication,
And I fear that you are being
Subtly manipulated.
This situation can end up quite serious.
My Lord, please come.
Our son has missed his father so much,
And so have I."
Her great black eyes
Suddenly filled with tears,
She kissed me impulsively
And was gone.
Ah, what was she talking about
-These charges being fabrications?
Of course they were, or would be,
As there were no charges yet,
And she couldn't possibly know anything.
Or could she?
Even old Aquarius didn't know
Why he was sitting in a cell
-Nor his daughter. I had seen to that.
And the Queen
Would not give her the time of day,
But would have firmly secluded herself
Against any interruption - I was sure,
While she debated what to do
With the head of her secret lover
And what she would say
As witness for the Prosecution.
Later that day
I heard from Capricorn
That the Lady Aquarius
Had engaged Libra
To act in her father's defense.
Aries, of course,
Would act for the Prosecution.
I detected a strong note of sympathy
In Capricorn's voice
When speaking of Aquarius,
For the two
Though as different in some ways
As they were alike in others,
Were good friends,
Both touched by Saturn, though differently.
Shortly after that,
One of the Virgos
Who edited the National News
Sent Gemini to interview me.
After the usual preliminaries
Where I presented him
With my latest book of poems
And he assured me
He had thoroughly enjoyed my last work,
In fact had it bound in fine leather
On his bookshelf,
We got down to business.
"What, My Lord, are the charges
That have been laid against Aquarius?
I have heard from some authorities
That they are fabrications."
"What authorities?" I asked quickly.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty,
But under Act 347 Royally proclaimed,
I am not required to divulge my sources.
Are these charges of a serious nature,
Or not?"
"Well." I said.
"Under Royal Prerogative
I am not required to divulge information either.
Perhaps we can make a trade."
Gemini's eyes lighted up
At that magic word.
He prided himself on his powers
Of persuasion.
"Yes, My Lord. Perhaps we can deal."
He smiled cheerily, his big white teeth
Bared in enthusiasm.
"I will tell you what I know,
Except of course,
The identities of my sources
Which are protected by law,
If you will tell me what you know."
"Sorry, Gemini. I'm interested
In Rumour Mongers, not rumours.
You'll have to do better than that."
"Well, My Lord, perhaps a hint,
And in return
You might reveal the nature
Of the charges."
"Yes Gemini.
I think we can deal.
Give me your hint,
And I'll give you
The nature of the charges."
"Well, My Lord, it might be more appropriate
For you to give me the nature of the charges
First, as they will be public in time anyway,
And then I will give you the hint of identity."
Ah, Gemini, Gemini...
You know well
That the King always comes first
And whatever else is appropriate
It is always appropriate
That the gift be given to the King
Before the person requesting the favour
Receive the King's bounty.
And what does it matter, after all.
We have struck a bargain,
And in the next two minutes
We shall each know
As much as the other may tell.
So, what is your hint?"
"Well, My Lord."
He shifted uncomfortably.
"The authority is feminine
-That is, one is.
The other is masculine."
"Yes, Gemini. Those are very big hints.
I'm sure they are as enlightening to me
As the nature of the charges
Will be to you."
Gemini leaned forward expectantly.
"The nature of the charges, Gemini,"
And I paused weightily.
-Have not yet been filed.
Since I will be judging the case,
As I told the Lady Aquarius
When she asked me,
I must remain impartial
And above-board,
And close my ears to common gossip."
I brushed past Gemini
With his open mouth
Into the garden
To muse over
Who those authorities were
Who were so sure
The Queen's charges would be fabrications.
I smiled grimly.
I had gained nothing from Gemini
Except the satisfaction
Of besting him at his talent.
The Round Table had been created
By my Grandfather's Magician
In order to stabilise the kingdom.
He was an Aquarius
And was determined to force the King
Into granting some measure of equality.
There were thirty-six places at the table
-Three for each Sign
To defend their interests
Debating in the evening
And the membership kept changing
Seats filled with alternates
Though seniority in the clans
Prevailed in the choice for the seats.
© Rudy Mervin 2001
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