#The Garden Of Earthly Delights

[389]

Panel of hell (detail), Hieronymus Bosch The Garden of Earthly Delights, c. 1480-1505 oil on panel, 220 x 390 cm (Prado)

[a-book-of-creatures]

I know it’s a tiny detail overlooked among the rest of the Garden of Earthly Delights, but I have to appreciate how jaunty Bosch’s cow is

[cosmonautroger]

Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden Of Earthly Delights, 1500

[shopwitchvamp]

Metaphor: ReFantazio // Hieronymus Bosch

So I'm sure a lot of people recognized this one:

Homo Avades // Tree Man from The Garden of Earthly Delights

But I've been picking up on so many as I play it that I'm about to start a collection here, haha

Homo Gorleo // Dancing Owl Head Man from The Garden of Earthly Delights

Homo Oppo // The Egg Man from The Last Judgement

Homo Fulquilo // Little Creature from St John the Evangelist on Patmos

And in one case at least, a special attack even looked like it was inspired by a drawing (from a page just titled Monsters)-

So will all the "humans" turn out to have pretty direct Hieronymus Bosch counterparts? Or maybe some other surreal renaissance artists will make an appearance?? Idk yet but I'm excited to play more and find out!

[zorosdimples]

pairing ⛧ yandere!diavolo x f!reader x barbatos

warnings ⛧ minors: please do not interact! i will block you. this is a doozy… implied toxic relationships, inhuman anatomy, monsterfucking, breeding, knotting, cervix fucking, dubious consent, pregnancy mention, lots and lots of cum, passing out, neglect (kind of), bondage and restraints, implied nonconsensual acts at the end. reader has a vagina and is referred to as “my little human” and “little one.” please let me know if there is anything i missed!

word count ⛧ 1129

notes ⛧ this is the first installment of the garden of earthly delights! i apologize for the wait; i hope everyone enjoys <3

you have never looked more beautiful—more his—than in this moment, diavolo thinks. the demon prince has one massive hand encircling your ankles, pressing your knees flush to your chest. his other hand cradles the back of your head with adoration, forcing your teary gaze to remain on him, a clawed thumb hooked between your swollen lips. his amber irises are nearly subsumed by his pupils, jet as the moonless night.

black spots cloud your watery vision as you slobber all over the digit, broken whines the only sound to leave your lips; the golden tips of his horns flash in your periphery. you’re on the verge of losing consciousness.

diavolo has been breeding you for hours. his long, thick cock—gilt, ribbed, impossibly large, and complete with a knot—has already stuffed you so full of seed that your stomach is distended. the viscous liquid, a rich cream with an otherworldly sheen, spurts out of your abused cunt with each of his powerful thrusts. the rest of it tingles hotly in your core.

“you can take one more, can’t you, my little human?” diavolo coos, breath unnervingly steady given the force of his movements. he leans down to smear a gentle kiss against your damp hairline before dropping your head and sliding his hand down to rub your puffy clit, plenty slick with the fluids coating your flesh.

“c-can’t,” you whimper. your nerves are fried and the overstimulation has your head pounding and your legs shaking as diavolo’s cock batters your cervix. your hands scratch and scrape at his chest in an attempt to get him to slow, to stop—anything—but your nails do not even pierce the prince’s thick flesh. the demon chuckles at your pathetic protests and his pace quickens in response.

hasn’t he taught you that you are not as fragile as you think?

“you can,” diavolo asserts, pulling out entirely. his crimson strands hang past his forehead and obscure his eyes, the glistering gold almost menacing as he leans over you. he strokes himself lazily, grazing his flared knot with a shiver, ready for his high. ready to see your womb swell with his heir.

“and you will,” he punctuates by plunging his cock and knot inside you in one fluid motion, a guttural groan rumbling from his heaving chest. your mouth stretches to accommodate a scream that never passes your lips. your body is aflame, dripping with sweat; the room fades into nothingness as diavolo’s hot cum pumps into your pulsing cunt.

the room is dusky when you awaken. your lover is gone, his warmth and ever-present touch absent, stillness in his place. the slippery silk sheets cling to you and glide along your curves as you sit upright. you clutch your forehead and curse the dull thump in your skull, a wince breaking the quiet. you feel a trickle of sticky cum ooze from you to join the wet puddle you slept atop like an animal.

the demon prince’s little pet.

a rustling sound draws you from your thoughts. a looming figure swathed in shadow floats toward the bed; you squeak in fright as you yank the sheets up to your neck in an attempt to shield your nude form.

“there you are,” barbatos, who you can now see as he emerges from the darkness, says. “i apologize for disturbing you. i am here on behalf of the young master.”

you breathe a shaky sigh of relief—the demon butler is your only friend in the lonely castle. “you scared me, barbatos. where’s diavolo?”

barbatos turns on the bedside lamp, bathing the room in a faint glow. his eyes, emerald in the low light, shine eerily as his gaze meets yours. “the young master had to run to an impromptu meeting, but he did not wish to disturb your rest. thus, i am here to aid you in his stead.”

you furrow your brows. a meeting. you were once a member of the student council, privy to conferences and other social functions—until diavolo’s devotion to you got the better of him. (as a human, you are far safer being completely removed from lesser demons. and there is no one better to care for you than the prince of the devildom himself.)

you suppress your memories. “thank you. i can manage myself.”

instead of bowing and leaving, though, barbatos stands still. his forked tail sways at his feet and his skeletal horns gleam resolutely. after a few moments of deathly silence, you rephrase your dismissal: “i don’t need any help, barbatos. i appreciate you checking on me.”

the demon takes a step closer to the bed, his knees nearly knocking against the frame. “you do not seem to understand me,” barbatos muses, gloved hand delicately resting beneath his chin. if you were less disoriented, you would notice the hint of mirth in his tone. “lord diavolo ordered me to assist you, as he had to leave unexpectedly. i shall honor his wishes.”

the corners of the butler’s lips curl into a faint smirk, but no humor marks his visage. in fact, there seems to be a primal hunger lurking in the dark, verdant depths of barbatos’s irises. fear beams through your body. it starts in the pit of your stomach and spreads its icy tendrils out through your limbs, biting your fingertips. headache forgotten, you now feel faint; your heart skitters like scared prey. unconsciously, you pull the sheets around you tightly, temporarily shielding yourself from the humiliation that is sure to come.

“there is nothing to fear, little one,” barbatos soothes, smoothing a hand over your hair, matted with sweat and his master’s cum. the act is more patronizing than it is comforting.

the demon snaps his fingers and the sheets wrapped around you disappear. you scramble to cover yourself with your hands, but barbatos is infinitely stronger and faster than you are. his forked tail—cold and wet—coils around your ankles and pulls you to the edge of the bed. another snap of his fingers, and your body is bound with invisible restraints. your arms are stretched above your head, almost painfully so. your legs are spread wide and bent at the knee; no matter how hard you try, you can’t move. there’s even a gag in your mouth to muffle your cries and force you to suck oxygen through your nose.

crouching between your open legs, the butler tsks. “oh my, what a mess.” his tail slithers up your leg and settles atop your womb. the slightest pressure from the appendage causes a stream of diavolo’s cum to rush out of your bruised hole. the demon’s snakelike tongue darts out and tastes the semen that is now pooled beneath your ass.

bartabos’s eyes meet yours and he smiles something wicked. “let’s get you cleaned up—shall we?”

[adams-r1b]

(details from 'The Garden of Early Delights' c.1490-1510 by Hieronymus Bosch)

[a-swift-and-terrible-sword]

[dexjarxenoengage]

The Humans in Metaphor Refantazio are mostly inspired by the artwork brought to us by Hieronymus Bosch and his most notable work: The Garden of Earthly Delights. And IMO, Atlus choosing this artist’s work to tell the story of Metaphor: Refantazio and its themes of racism and fear and anxieties is an excellent choice.

That being said, not every Human Boss in this game are based on Bosch’s work, some take their own ideas in mind, while others have their own interpretations they take after. Speaking of which, I want to talk about how each of the Human Bosses that Will and his crew face in the game each represents the Seven Deadly Sins. Why? Because the Garden of Earthly Delights perfectly represents the things that happen in the Bible, from the start a beauty of the garden up until its, and humanities fall from grace. Even if the translation from Google Translate aren’t perfect, we can use them to best determine why they represent that sin.

This will be discussing the bosses we face in the game, the story behind them, as well as the final boss. So naturally, there will be spoilers.

I will talk about each Human boss enemy we face in order of when we encounter them. Melancholia Zorba will not count for this discussion, but I will talk about Zorba later. Since we don’t face Will has a human boss, I won’t be counting him for this list either.

This list is inspired by the mini bosses we fight in the final dungeon: The Tyrant Star. You have to fight the Humans you have encountered over the course of the game in order to weaken Destroyer Charadrius’ final form. Choosing not to results in Destroyer Charadrius getting more Press Turns, a higher level and each of the abilities said humans (you get a trophy for doing this).

I decided to go back and change some things after looking at the translations (however poor) of the Human Monsters, I was right to assume about one of the humans, but after looking deeper into things, I was surprised to find that some of the humans represent these sins very subtly more often than not.

We start with Homo Gorleo (translation: Human Throat), the human we fight at the Border fort and where Will awakens to his Archetype. I have been debating on whether I want to give the sin representation to this beast, it was between Gluttony and Greed. After translating its name, “human throat,” I was really scratching my head.

So this could mean that Homo Gorleo is in fact the sin of Gluttony. But surely there has to be more to it than just simply eating from its own body to sustain itself. Gluttony means overindulging and taking on more than one can chew. So it is a type of greed, in a way, I wasn’t completely wrong when I had the idea of giving it the sin of greed.

More importantly, this human embodies the actions of Klinger, who sent Will, Strohl, and many others to die at that human’s hands (or legs, in this case) in order to give more merit to Louis’ words and increase his own political influence. And if he had succeeded to get away with this, many others would have shared the same fate as those in the fort and the victims of Halia (Strohl’s home village).

Klinger embodies the nasty side of nobility that gorges on the wealth they are blessed with. While Strohl is the noble that lost everything and has learned that he needs to use what he has to help the less fortunate. And helping the weak becomes the main slogan of Will’s team when the Tournament for the Throne begins.

Next is Homo Avades, which is the Human in the Box art and matches Hieronymus Bosch’s most iconic art piece. The name of this human actually gives the idea on what sin it represents: Homo Avades roughly translates to English as “a person who is greedy.” This Human is the one that Louis brought to the Grand Cathedral in order to give his speech on the humans and his duty to slay them as proof that he should be the rightful ruler.

Homo Avades is one of the humans that was majorly advertised throughout the marketing for this game. It serves as our first major boss in the game (as in our first major fight during the story operations in the game). And this human representing greed is symbolic of the fact that this game as a whole, both in the place we are fighting in and throughout Euchronia, are (for the most part) living for their own selfish desires. So in a way, Homo Avades is one of the first representatives of what Will and the others have to fight against moment to moment.

And also, the reason why we have to fight in the first place is because Zorba, Louis’s right hand man, revives it in his attempt to spite the society that rejected him. In a way, this is his “selfish” attempts to fight against the cruel system that he hates.

Will, Strohl and Hulkenburg (and Gallica) fought bravely to stop the human from destroying Royal Capital. This act of bravery gives Will and the others some renown, which would be needed for the upcoming tournament; and more importantly, stay true to the act of winning the faith of the people.

The Greatworm Homo Butera was the other Human I was debating on whether its the seen of Gluttony or Greed. But after finally settling on Gluttony and Greed for both Homo Gorleo and Avades respectively, this is the human I needed time to realize what it embodies. Homo Butera translated to “Buttery Man.” That’s… not exactly helpful for this post or imposing.

That being said, given the understanding of the word “butter,” it does fit with the theme of eating that comes with the Martira arc. This includes introducing Hulkenburg’s love for… “unconventional” food. This as well includes Homo Jaluzo, whom we will talk about later, that is being fed with adults and children alike.

Back to the topic at hand though, it’s possible that Homo Butera symbolizes lust. Reasoning being is that there is another way we can interpret the word “buttery,” and that is through another term like “butter up.” To “butter up” something or someone is to entice them with empty words or promises. This is best shown when Morris (one of the key figures behind the kidnappings Will and the others are tasked to stop) gives Will and the others an idea on how to find Heismay without getting caught up in the Sandworm. He was lying, and Will and the others get eaten by the human worm as a result.

The themes of lust, and by extension, the term that we are using to describe the themes of this human, continues while trapped inside of its stomach. The goal of this dungeon is to escape out of the worm’s… “other hole” within the time limit. During which, you can try to get as many items as possible, because you can play through this Dungeon again after you are through with it. If you get too caught up chasing after items, you may run out of time to escape and will get a game over for it. Which is why I prefer to just get to the exit as soon as possible.

And finally, there is Morris himself after he is ratted out to be the kidnapper. Morris’s reason for helping Joanna kidnap and feed people to Homo Jaluzo is because he just wanted to fatten his piggy bank. Ultimately he gets his comeuppance, as he becomes Homo Jaluzo’s last meal.

Speaking of Homo Jaluzo, this was the easiest Human Sin symbolism to find. This was the only human translation I could get that I actually liked and was the perfect symbolism for. Jaluzo is the Esperanto term for “jealousy,” which is the perfect symbolism for a grieving mother who lost her half breed son to cruelty. And thus Homo Jaluzo’s sin undoubtedly, envy.

It’s perfect for the Joanna to represent the sin of envy as well. Homo Jaluzo served as a replacement to her deceased son, and thus she takes her anger out on other parents who have children out of rage for those parents have, but she had taken from her. The difference between how Zorba and Joanna take their anger out is this: Zorba is out on the entire society, while Joanna has (mostly) targeted the people that had children out of spite for what she had lost. It isn’t until Heismay (who Joanna framed, but also lost his own child) chose to understand what drove her down this path that Joanna sees the error of her ways.

The Sea Horror Homo Sabara’s name translates to “a person who is a sabar.” This made absolutely NO sense to me whatsoever. So I looked up the word “Sabar” and the closest word I could find to match is the word “Sabr.”

“Sabr” or “Sabar” is an old phrase that emphasizes on waiting, perseverance and patience. So staying true to this talking about what sins relate to each of the human boss fights, the closest thing we have is wrath. Wrath is extreme anger that blinds your ability to think rationally. The EXACT opposite of being patient.

Now how does this fight with symbolism of this fight? For context, this fight takes place on the way to Virga Island. During the trip, the Magnus Brothers (Basilio and Fidelio) have joined the ride to spy on Will and Junah, so they get caught in the crossfire because of it.

The reason for why I believe Sabara represents the sin of wrath is because of how it ties into Fidelio’s character. Fidelio (and his brother) were victims of Igniter experimental abuse (alongside many other Paripus (one of which led to Heismay losing his son, hence why he hates the Paripus) and had hated the church and the late king ever since. This leads them to meet Saint Rella and Junah, with the brothers falling in love with the surrogate siblings.

Fidelio’s main flaw comes down to his irrationality towards the things he doesn’t agree with. Be it the party’s philosophy and how they wish to save Eupha during the mission for the Lance, or his opinions on King Hythlodaeus and hatred towards the church. In contrast, Basilio has the emotional intelligence needed to see the bigger picture and truly ask Basilio if what they are doing is truly right.

The only time Basilio has lost his cool is when Fidelio died from protecting from Louis attack on some church folk. Fidelio dies with clarity on the fact that his rage towards the world blinded him to the fact that there are other people who were in his position that may have needed help like he did. And as for Basilio, if Eupha hadn’t yelled him back into sensibility, he would have wasted his brother’s sacrifice.

And then we get to Basilio’s awakening. It’s thanks to Fidelio’s reminder that he has the strength to protect the weak that gives Basilio the courage to move forward without him. And in contrast to many other awakenings in this game, Basilio calmly says goodbye his brother outside of the battlefield.

“See ya around, Del.” - Basilio

Basilio’s starting Archetype is the Berserker. So in a twist of irony, Basilio awakens to a wrathful Archetype in the calmest manner possible. It symbolizes Basilio tapping into those emotions into power without succumbing to them. And thus, Basilio controlled his wrath.

Homo Margo’s name is translated roughly as “human on the edge.” It’s a fitting for the story of the Mustari who are relying on human sacrifices to cure their fears and anxieties (such as our party member to be Eupha). Homo Margo is pretty much a Mustari turned into a Human. So the best sin to associate Homo Margo is Sloth.

Sloth is basically stillness in effort, laziness to put it simply. It perfectly represents the people of Virga Island rely on their teachings and their dragon god to be their shelter in the storm. Eupha herself admits that she had simply her teachings and worries of the people as her crutch for the choices she makes, which would have led to an undignified and senseless death.

It’s thanks to the Will and the others that she learns and accepts the truth. She finally understands what the human that possessed Eht represents: an unwillingness to see or confront what’s in front of them. And thus it blinds them to the truth. By learning from these mistakes, Eupha becomes a priestess with the courage and assertiveness to ascertain her own answer to life.

From then on, Eupha makes the willing choice to travel with Will and the others so that she can grow both as a Priestess and as a person. Eupha becomes more open towards her own emotions and opinions such as when she suggests to tell the Magnus brothers the truth on why they wanted to kill Louis. As well as Eupha being the most outspoken when Basilio was going to chase after Louis after Fidelio’s death.

And last, but most definitely not least, is Louis’s Human form: Destroyer Charadrius. Unlike the many other Humans in the game that were made with Hieronymus Bosch in mind, Destroyer Charadrius is based on Lucifer of the Divine Comedy: Inferno. So it’s only natural that his assigned sin is none other than Pride: the foundation of all sins according to the Bible.

Louis’ fatal flaw has always been pride. This is best shown as the game continues into the final arc. When Will and the others are close to beating him during the fight at Grand Trad on 9/24, Louis resorts to using his magic on Will to transform him into a Human to make the people of the country lose faith in him.

Louis prides himself on the beliefs that power is the deciding factor of the world he plans on creating. But were that the case, one would think Louis should have just accepted defeat the very moment Will and Co. proved their strength to stand against him. But Louis uses a cowardly trick in the midst of the duel to make Will seem like the bad guy.

Louis’s pride, above everything else, prevents him from seeing how he falls short of the very ideals he speaks of. He can’t think for one second at the very thought that he was in the wrong. Which is why he makes it clear that he will kill anyone who doesn’t agree with him.

Louis Social Darwinist worldview (or at least he plans on acting on it) revolves around turning the Royal Sceptre’s accumulated anxiety onto the people to see which people would survive the human transformation and gain more power and who wouldn’t. But Louis fails to realize that his philosophy will backfire because the human transformation is caused by mass amounts of Magla that can’t be controlled (which leads to his own human transformation at the end of the game).

Louis’s refusal to accept his faults or learn to quit when he was ahead finally leads to his death at Will’s hand after awakening his final Archetype.

Will and his friends all have learned to be open to different perspectives without losing themselves to their fears and anxieties. But Louis himself is blind to his own weaknesses and didn’t open his eyes to that truth, it ends with him falling short on his beliefs and dying in the process.

We are done with talking about all of the human bosses and how they represent the seven deadly sins. But there actually is one more unorthodox sin that some scriptures have to be an 8th sin: Despair.

Despair is the ultimate killer of idealism and the ability to believe. This chain of despair from Hythlodaeus losing his wife and son, to Louis losing faith in the king after getting blamed for the Prince’s curse is what led to the chain of events that caused this story in the first place. And had Will fallen into despair over the state of the world in any of the bad endings, he would have been no different than both Louis and Hythlodaeus.

I did say I wouldn’t count Will as part of this list, and said that I would mention Zorba. But the reason for why I’m doing this at all is because it’s important to tie in despair with how the fears and anxieties of the world serves as the fuel behind the Human transformations to begin with.

Melancholia is dense and uncontrollable Magla that can drive any person or beast to insanity. Melancholia itself is a term for “melancholy,” meaning deep sadness. And thus, back to the point of why Louis’s philosophy was doom to fail him, he couldn’t overcome the fears and anxieties that came from the day he lost his family and home to the flames of the church. And thus he takes that sadness out on others (namely Strohl with Halia).

Zorba himself was already a madman long before his human transformation, and thus is the reason why he could “maintain” his physical body.

The Archetypes are supposed be the power that comes from overcoming one’s anxieties. And with it, the power of magic.

Now back to Will and the themes of despair. It’s only as Will maintains his hope and idealism that he truly becomes king. But this is where the Elegy of the Soul comes into play. While this boss is not a human enemy, it’s a dragon that has been overtaken by the fears and anxieties of the people. Thus the Elegy of the Soul represents the potential destruction that can be brought out by the future “hero.” That hero being Will, so this is the closest we get to fighting “Will” as a corrupted version of himself.

This fight is proof that even if Will becomes the king and stops Louis, it doesn’t guarantee that the world will become a truly perfect Utopia. But Will’s character is about striving for a better world is the better alternative than giving up on it/destroying it. And thus, Will’s character is also about maintaining hope in a way that More and Louis could not.

And that power is what it means to face fears and anxieties and become a true king.

[speerfisch]

Homo incurvatus in se, Bosch inspired studies and illustrations, sketchbook nr. 19, 2024

[murasaki-cha]

The way I, an arts and design major, bolted up from my seat so fast to get closer to the screen when I realised the painting (or more correctly the triptych)in Hades' place is "The Garden Of Earthly Delights" by Bosch

[certainwoman]

The Garden of Earthly Delights (2004), dir. Lech Majewski

[bartleby-company]

El jardín de las delicias, 1490-1500 · Hieronymus BoschMuseo del Prado, Madrid.

[zorosdimples]

pairing ⛧ creepy medical student! law x gn! reader

warnings ⛧ minors: please do not interact! i will block you. while there’s no smut, this is suggestive, and everything that happens is nonconsensual (law is gross). mentions of masturbation, fucking inanimate objects, bruises, and death. additionally: cum sighting, cursing, knife play, a little blood, some spit, manhandling, and general grimetown weirdness.

word count ⛧ 1132

notes ⛧ this is another installment of the garden of earthly delights series, as well as a contribution to @bastardblvd’s house of slimy horrors collab—my prompt was “pumpkin patch”! the plot is nonexistent… just go with it <3

something isn’t right.

the early evening sky is hazy, the sun obscured by a leaden film that shrouds grimetown’s pumpkin patch in a deathly hue. the barren field before you is more of a squash graveyard than anything else—the vast expanse of dirt is littered with a few dozen orange carcasses.

this is certainly not what you were expecting when your date suggested a fun autumnal outing.

“this has to be the world’s most depressing pumpkin patch,” you grouse, craning your neck to look up at law’s stony expression; as usual, his face doesn’t betray his thoughts. you can never get a good read on him. you don’t know him well enough to tell if he’s simply awkward or if he genuinely doesn’t emote. “we should go somewhere else.”

the jet-haired man places a firm palm on the small of your back, urging you forward. “c’mon, we’re already here. we can’t make jack-o-lanterns without pumpkins. toji joe’s is out of ‘em.”

there’s a peculiar lilt to his words—a faux positivity that makes you hesitate for a split second. but you move forward anyway.

the blustery air ruffles your clothes as you drift across the dark earth with law, searching for a pumpkin that isn’t in some state of decomposition. this is exactly the sort of scenario you hear about on your favorite podcasts and documentaries: a careless person accompanied by a man they barely know in a remote area, not so much as a whisper of nearby life on the wind.

all you really know about law is that he’s a handsome medical student who shares similar interests, namely in true crime and literature. that, and he had been unusually pushy about this outing.

“hey, that looks like a good one.” law points to a suitable carving prospect. crouching down to get a closer look, a gasp leaves your lips when you find a hole a few inches in diameter bored into the side of the pumpkin. what appears to have once been a pale cream fluid is now a flaky crust, caking the opening. “is that—”

“probably,” law cuts in, resting a cold, tattooed hand on your shoulder. startled, you nearly topple over, but his strong arms catch you and pull you to his chest. now standing, you jerk in his embrace; he releases his hold and you take a few steps back. “it’s one of kappa upsilon mu’s fall festival activities.”

it’s impossible to hide the disgust that furrows your brow and creeps into your voice. “they mutilate pumpkins and fuck them like fleshlights as a frat tradition?”

law shrugs. you swear you see a glimmer of humor flit through his amber irises. “it’s not even close to the weirdest thing they do. ever heard of a ‘cum fountain’?”

you hold up a hand to stop him. “i don’t even wanna know.”

but something isn’t adding up you think with a frown. “if you knew all the pumpkins were going to be cut up and…violated, why did you bring me here, law?” you tried to measure your words carefully, but now that they hang in the open, your accusation is evident.

your date’s lips curl into an ominous smirk. the familiar chill of dread nips at your heels and paws at your chest. “well,” law starts, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a switchblade. your eyes rivet on the tool—the weapon—as he fiddles with it, nimble fingers gliding along the handle before flicking it open with ease. his bored, yellow gaze unnerves you; his words ooze calculated confidence. “i’m gonna practice my carving skills with you.”

his statement rips the breath from your lungs. unsure of what to do, you chuckle uncomfortably, praying that he’s still talking about the goddamn pumpkins.

law edges closer to you, a hunter testing his prey. you don’t move—you don’t think you could if you tried. your mind is racing in countless directions, but you can’t settle on an action, a plan. and this freak—your date—is one small thrust of the blade from you, crowding your space. so you stare down the predator’s maw.

“you’re beautiful,” law states, though it doesn’t sound complimentary; it’s an observation. there’s a clinical coldness to his words that makes you feel like you’re trapped in a microscope slide. he gestures to you with the knife, the unspoken threat palpable.

“oh. um, th-thank you,” you stammer, eyes darting wildly, cornered prey.

you force yourself to think: how do you escape this fucker? you had to take a shitty taxi to get to the pumpkin patch, but the driver could barely keep the car in its lane and tried to proposition you for sex. is everyone in grimetown a slimeball? you don’t realize your nails are biting so deeply into the skin of your palms that blood is dripping onto the dirt.

as though he can read your thoughts, law says coolly, “i wouldn’t run if i were you.”

options dwindling, you remember your lifeline. slowly, you inch a hand toward your back pocket where your phone sits. but your opponent is perceptive; law cracks a wide smile that doesn’t reach his eyes, running his tongue across his sharp teeth. he raises the knife and presses the flat side of the blade against your neck.

it’s an effective warning.

“there’s no signal out here—the only cell provider that services grimetown is slime mobile. you can check, though, if it makes you feel better,” law taunts.

to your horror, your phone reads “no service” at the top of the screen. your skin itches, nerves buzzing with adrenaline. your hands shake, fear and rage coalescing into an unshakeable tremor that has sweat beading at your temples. hot tears of frustration singe your cheeks. but the cold steel of the blade against your throat saps the fight from your body.

your final resort?

“fuck you,” you hiss with all the venom you can muster. and, before you can stop yourself: ptui. you launch a glob of spit that lands squarely on law’s cheek, punctuating your insult.

law doesn’t flinch. rather, he swipes two calloused fingertips through your precious gift. he holds his wet digits up, admiring the glistening pads of his fingers, then pops them into his mouth. the groan he emits while enjoying your taste makes you lightheaded. he pivots his blade so that the honed tip scrapes an angry line up the column of your throat. the pressure isn’t enough to slice your flesh—yet.

you shriek when law forcefully grabs your jaw and pulls you to him. bruises in the shape of his fingers will bloom on your face tomorrow—if you live that long, anyway. for the first time, his wide grin crinkles his hawkish eyes.

his voice is thick with desire as he murmurs, “i’d like to fuck you first.”

[spacecovvgirl]

The Garden of Earthly Delights (triptych, right panel), 1490-1500, Hieronymus Bosch // Berserk (Volume 34, p. 172), 2009, Kentaro Miura

[a-swift-and-terrible-sword]

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Triptych: The Garden of Earthly Delights Hieronymus Bosch, Prado, Museum, Madrid, Spain.

* * * *

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities.

[Sandra Lynn Sparks]