Romeo & Juliet: Living Tragedy?

Romeo, in the tomb, takes poison, dying as he kisses Juliet. As Friar Lawrence enters the tomb, Juliet awakes to find Romeo lying dead. Frightened by a noise, the Friar flees the tomb. Juliet kills herself with Romeo's dagger.

A black hooded figure enters and sees two young useful humans who she can use for her own mischief. Lifting her black gnarled wand the witch raises them both from death to be her puppets with full loving hearts.

Their suffering will be my joy.

Her black cloak flaps around her as she speaks.

"Conjur them up, hold them down, until they agree, for life to me, bound.

Serve me in all they do below and above,

To ensure their connection remains eternal love.

Death parted them but reunites them now,

Hold them still till they consent to be my dolls anyhow."

Her spells grows and green smoke swirls around lifeless Romeo & Juliet until their chilled torsos twitch one at a time.

Romeo speaks in anguish and sorrow, "Am I in hell by my Juliet? Or on a body of stench and decay?"

Juliet's eyes flutter open as her wound shrinks in her heart but the dagger remains, "Romeo wherefore art thou? I have followed you to the beyond to eternally embrace your lover's attention."

The witch gags at their over the top declarations of love.

"Cut it out you two, you are my playthings now who earn your life to keep your love alive."

Romeo tugs at the witches spell which binds him so he can’t move, "I’m stuck, do you bind me with rope? Please release me so I may caress the fragrant hand of my dear Juliet."

"My magic holds you still silly boy, swear you will do all I ask forever, then you may be with that clammy virgin if you must," says the hook-nosed witch, pulling her tatty onyx hood over her pale features. The sign on her heart marked bitter shines in the dark where the moon from the tiniest glimmer of hope waits hanging on a cliff edge above a knife point.

Juliet speaks, "You are by me my love, my Romeo of such devotion and honour? Yes witch we will serve your evil plans if we can hug and be together at night."

The witch crackles, "Both say you consent to do anything at all times for me, then I will create a home for you both to live in," she says. Twisting the magic black metal key in her hand to their eternal prison which she relishes to give to them to enjoy their melancholy.

"We agree with all we hold dear and true, we will be one thanks to you!"

Ah one indeed for all to see, as an attraction to fill my purse, thinks the black hearted witch.

***

Romeo and Juliet wake up that night and their invisible chains release from painful wrists and ankles.

Romeo leans in to smell his precious Juliet and kisses her indented wrist, with regular red lines where the rope dug its restrictive curse in her pale pink flesh.

"My Juliet, we should bathe before we embrace. Where is your nursey to freshen your skin and locks to later dress you?"

"I think we will learn to tend to our own needs. Maybe you can smooth water over my stale back and hair? I wonder if the jailer of our life has ass's milk, fresh herbs and oils so we can bathe?"

A voice from behind a curtain whispers, "This is indeed a treat if I see the lover's entwine in their nightly bathing ritual."

Romeo shouts out to the witch, "Mistress of our ropes give us the nights on our own unwatched, and during the day we will be your spectacle, your puppets to entertain the masses."

A bitter, sadistic cackle echoes in the ears and hearts of Romeo and Juliet when they realise they have sealed their own doom, permanently.

"Agreed my dears, bathe in sweet oils, smooth your hair and dress in fine silks. Then share your every gesture with a waiting audience as a daily theatrical production. The play will be called Romeo and Juliet: A Lover's Tragedy. Replay your death scene every afternoon and wake with passion on your lips and hips until I wake you at sunrise for another day of your pain being my pleasure."

Love is tosh, love is rot, best we all forget the lot, thinks the witch remembering how she was betrayed by Ferdinand all those years ago.

Juliet sits up to absorb the cruel witches' words, "Can we make children?"

"Unlikely, you are both living corpses," replies the witch, fingering her half empty purse.

Romeo cups his hand around Juliet's ice-cold soft digits, "Can we be lover's with intimacy that fulfills?"

"It will fulfill my sadistic heart to watch you try," laughs the witch.

"Oh," they both reply and move closer together for mutual comfort.

"Your Majesty, their special baths are ready," said a crooked man with one eye and a limp.

"Thank you Ferdinand I shall enjoy getting them ready for tomorrow and tomorrow and then, tomorrow. The endless days of love's death promise so Romeo & Juliet the play, will be the most well-known play of all time. With nobody knowing they are the original pair, who killed themselves in panicking despair."

While Romeo and Juliet talk for hours the witch sends out folks to tell villagers and townspeople of a new tragedy of love: Romeo & Juliet.

Romeo and Juliet unclasp their clothes, and step into the warm enchanted bath which cleans, softens and invigorates them. Until they look just as they did in life. Young, soft skinned, draped in health and charm while their bodies are swaddled in expensive silks and rose petal scented oils.

***

They slept on a large soft bed of silk and sheep wool blankets until the first morning mist stirs them. The witch inserted a memory of them eating a hearty breakfast, while adding rouge to their cheeks.

"Now my pair of romantic dolls go relive your dying moments to entertain the assembled crowd,” says the witch poking Juliet’s arm with her skeletal finger whose sagging skin struggles to cover them.

The dagger protrudes from Juliet's milky-white breast as she is clapped and cheered by the enthusiastic audience. The performance is over and gaudy lowers to dim as all in the theatrical big top tent returns to silence.

"It is our time alone once more my dear one, I wish you were my wife. I wonder if the hag will witness our marriage?" Romeo whispers.

Juliet's lily white hands tug at the blade to pull it from the gap between her ribs.

"Oh dear I have a different hole in the same gown and it will look a mess if I keep stitching it up."

Before Juliet can speak further about her dress or their future hopes to marry the crone's outer image of the witch slides in front of them with her full purse rocking to and fro before thier tired eyes.

"Well done my dolls you attracted an affluent crowd today so I shall buy you each a treat. Bigger ropes to bind you and no marriage paper yet. Remember you must be desperate in your tragic last scene. Married you feel less distress. No, that will not do. Suffer for your love my two pretties," cackles the witch. 

Her nose crinkles further with each passing day of sadism inflicted on the yearning young undead couple. She counts the years until her sorcery husk humans call a body renews itself. When she is young she is kind and when she is old with a craggy face she is sadistic.

Juliet tugged at the hole in her gown and put the blade back in Romeo's sheath attached to his waist. His leather belt engraved with his family insignia pulled in his firm waist to highlight the firm abs beneath.

"Oh you have made another hole in your dress Juliet, do plunge the dagger higher up in your breast to not damage your dress or I will make you repair it tomorrow rather than Ferdinand," says the witch patting her heavy purse.

Juliet dared to look into the creased black pupils of the withered witch, "Will you please set a date to witness our marriage? We can't have children or wear rings but can wear identical necklaces with a circle of two halves, which we each wear."

"At least five years of afternoon joint-murder must you both suffer before I am buried and am reborn as a beauty," replies the witch.

A single tear flicks off Juliet's lash and rolls down her cheek. The witch captures it in a vial and pops the cork stopper on. The tiny glass container swings to and fro as she clicks the door shut on the cage they call home. Now looking in at them through the cage bars, she tightens her boney grip until the gold coins dig into her dried flesh.

Romeo unbuttons Juliet's bodice and licks her dried blood away from her alabaster flesh. Running his fingers around the healing wound until the magic cage dissipates the crust into dust which he blows away with his warm breath. Juliet mutters in ecstasy from his lip's caress.

Unseen from behind a thick drape around the cage Fernand thinks, ah young love. How I wish my love, the witch still accepted my lips. Instead I begged an eternal alliance with her. What a mistake that was. They say love conquers all but it can smash all too.

"Ferdinand, where are you? I need my tight shoulders massaged!" Shouts the witch.

A scrape-thud-scrape-thud rhythmic sound has Juliet jump and Romeo pull back the curtain to see the ragged clothes hanging off the living corpse of Ferdinand as he drags his twisted ankle away towards the nearby black tent of the witch.

They hear her usual question to him, "Do you suffer for me again today? Oh good!"

"Perhaps we are better off entombed together after all," says Juliet and Romeo kisses away her tears.

"Ah yes, I should've known better," whispers Romeo as they entwine.