Roses are red

It wore his skin flawlessly. It looked like any other: dancing, feasting, weighing in on current affairs. One would have to regard it closely to see the sum of all that is dark dwelling inside. Its eyes froze men in place and made women sigh. 

The dance was in full swing. Jolly, colorful musicians strung their instruments. A tune from the far east filled the hall bringing visions of sand dunes, of pointy towers, of figs and spice. Draped in gold and white linen the beautiful Harrisa spun on her bare feet. Her laugh echoed violently throughout the stone dome as prince Rasel Hanout crushed her tiny waist, his jewelled fingers drawing blood. Behind the mask it smiled as couples swayed to the rhythm, intoxicated by opium and wine. 

Its suit was a functional one. The owner was a high ranking officer. The wool was thick enough to stop a cut from any sabre. The gold and silver decorations gave it an aura of power. Its meaty hands grasped the lapel as a young woman approached. Her dress shimmered while she gracefully paced on the mirror floors, her heels tapping a delightful tune.

“Lieutenant Harbinger, I'm happy to see you well. I've heard terrible things about the latest battle. My heart sank knowing your division was holding that hill…” she said, tearing up. Her slender, see-through fingers touched its chest. A wide smile brightened the features of what was once an honourable man.

“Such a waste of life. My men fought bravely to the very last. They are the real heroes, not I.”

“I can't imagine what burden you're forced to carry, lieutenant.”

“I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, miss. But enough of war, how is your evening going so far?”

“It's all so strange… It's as if we entered a land that time forgot, filled with tales of heroes and monsters.”

The music had people twisting and turning. It looked like a battlefield, each side with its banners and colors intertwined. It laughed, placing a gloved hand on her naked shoulder.

“Then let us pray a brave knight is among us, a dragon slayer. Come, walk with me.”

Red roses with thorns the size of wolf's teeth filled the garden with a sweet scent. Trickling water poured from the saucer shaped fountain, a cold drop occasionally landing on her finger when they moved too close.

“Isn't it beautiful here, miss? Why are you silent?”

“Forgive me, I'm concerned with gossip. I wouldn't want to harm your reputation, lieutenant.”

“What might that be, my dear? Am I a man of action, capable of great acts of bravery?”

“Yes, of course why would you doubt that? Your victories on the front line will win us the war. Everyone speaks highly of Lieutenant Harbinger, even the King knows your deeds.”

“Is it something else you fear would put me in a bad light?”

“Your beautiful wife and two sons… We should step inside. It is a ball after all.”

“Remind me how we know each other?”

“I don't understand…”

“You came to me concerned about my safety, crying. My loving wife is nowhere to be found yet this ball is in honor of your military. Why doesn't she accompany the great war hero? What does that make you miss? A friend? No man can resist such a beautiful, free, and young creature.”

“Please stop, your words cut deep. I will leave you be, I'm sorry.”

She walked past it fighting tears and disappeared into the ranks of dancers. “Lieutenant Harbinger” paced the garden navigating the maze by moonlight. The green walls rose almost three metres tall. It ran its fingers through the vines. The music faded as it went deeper inside the maze. A small wire gazebo rose in the clearing, the centre of that green labyrinth. In contrast to the beautiful flowers of the garden this cage was bare and cold. Nothing grew on its steel wires, no bird rested its feathers, no song to be heard. This place was kept a secret, hidden away by tall grasses. 

“You fear me and yet you have returned,” it said without turning to look upon the young woman.

“I need to know. Why?”

“Ah, doubts…” it said stepping inside the gazebo. “Questions can plague a mind, make it sick, even destroy it. The answer will not bring you peace, it will raise yet more questions. Come, stand by my side.”

She inched forward and accepted his hand. They faced each other inside the cage, hidden away from the world.

“Why do you push me away? I have done everything to protect you. All these years of living a lie, it's too much for me. I know she doesn't love you, she doesn't deserve you. But I would never harm your family, your beautiful children. I've not married, going against my father's wishes.” Her tiny frame shook with every breath the woman struggled to swallow. 

“Your life is a lie. You love this man, this husk. He brings shame and misery.”

“What's happened to you? What happened on that hill? Please tell me or I will die.”

“The lieutenant lost all his men. They were slaughtered, pounded into the earth by cannon fire, trampled to muck by cavalry. He took shelter in a ditch dug with bare hands, desperate to escape death's grasp. He died a coward. His heart stopped beating.”

The woman fell to her knees sobbing. A petal caressed her cheek. She opened her eyes and saw the gazebo had bloomed with all manner of flowers and plants. She couldn't make sense of anything.

“A lie but a beautiful one nonetheless. Would you like to live this lie together? Would you like to be united with your departed lieutenant, the man who taught you love, suffering, fear and shame?”

“I do, spirit.”

“Then pull his sabre from the scabbard and throw yourself on to it.”

“Will I remember everything about us?”

“Just the flowers in bloom, never the empty cage.”