The Duchess and Lord of Lyricism Dialogue on Love

I have never before collaborated with anyone, but today I have had the privilege and honor of working with the very talented Nandita (Manan Unleashed) on this poetic dialogue between the Duchess and Lord of Lyricism,  the final installment in both of our respective series (due to reasons we deem unfit to divulge.) I (we) truly hope you, the readers, enjoy this collaboration! 

As Sol reigned high in the sky, the duchess did spy the Lord of Lyricism,
And she decided to fly to where he was perched on his literary birch;
“Ah! So it is the star-gazed lover who hovers in ethereal art covers!
Welcome, my dear, and what will you say that I should now hear?”

The Duchess sat herself near the Lord of Lyricism
Who looked at her with such tender affection in his wise eyes;
She could not help but spill her secrets,
Harboured within the deep cavern of her heart.
“What do I say my Lord? I had a mortal fight last night
With the Lun who refused to shine on the dark side of my duke.

“Light and dark; night and day, are they not both at play?”
Answered the Lord of Lyricism. “But dear one so near
My heart, no one need tell you when the sun does rise,
For it is no surprise; no one need tell you there is a
Dark side to every glorious lark. Every song is bound
To have one wrong key, you see, so what it is you have
Sought and at what price have you bought your love?”

“Shed some light my lord; what causes me to worry so?
All I have ever seen since love was conceived
Are seeds of stars in those magical eyes;
Alas! Last night, as we were gallivanting in the garden of
Love, a storm came and the Lun hid behind dark clouds;
It seemed to steal the stars that lit up my heart
And I was left with a disdainful black night.”

“Ah, dear Duchess, love is always planted in seeds
And needs to grow to show its worth of timely birth;
But the storms must come to transform love as it
Forms, and sometimes then the bright stars of night
Are hidden from view to the two in love; fear not!
Stars above are still shining, and pay no mind to
Luns and their unkind ways; the rays of love may
Still shine in your heart and that of the Duke, and
Then ne’er shall you part ways for the days to come!”

“My heart knows my Lord the pearls of wisdom you implant
For I was born after all from that seed
From whence my love has sprung
And so although burnt clouds may at times overcast my clear skies
And those stars that light up my world get stolen from those eyes I now call home
I must chide myself every time I doubt my heart
That I cannot appreciate the beauty of the calm
Unless I go through the storm.”

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Lord of Lyricism: Monologue

And the lord of lyricism spoke:

Ah! the joy you bring me with but a few heard words,
With only some few fine lines, to look and see and
Be enraptured by the love you dare to share with one
Kindred spirit; and I can hear it: the angels singing,
And I can see it: the angels bringing the two of you
Together from afar beneath one bright star, two lights
Colliding brightly, twirling and swirling in an ethereal
Dance because you took the chance to really be who you
Are and not to be marred by the world around, hearing
Instead the sound of eternity, never-ending cycle of
Being; yes, seeing the two of you renews my hope for
Humanity despite all the insanity; ah, yes, there is
More to the chore of love, but you have already joined
Hands and hearts into one, leaving no part uncovered;
No, there is no gain without pain but I fain would tell
You that love straight and true will win the day…
In its own time and way.

The Lord of Lyricism Answers the Fool

The lord of lyricism did lurch from his literary perch,
And bid the king of fools to leave; “but why?” came the
Reply; “do you not believe what I conceive to be true?”
But the lord turned and burned with indignation; “if you
Knew what is true you would not be the king of fools, so
Stop using your folly tools to misconceive and deceive!”
“Sing your song, my lord, and pray tell me how I am wrong;”
So the lord answered, “I am bored by your talk and would
Walk away, but I will say, the duke of metaphor and duchess
Of stanza already live together as finely entwined feathers
In the ethereal realm of aesthetics, where there love does
Overwhelm space and time; indeed they rhyme and chime now
As one and their romance has only just begun! Now be gone;
Be gone, O king of fools, with your spools of ignorance
And folly!” But the daft king only laughed, then poked the
Lord and spoke, “Love cannot last forever above the world;
There must be the pace to meet face to face!” To which the
Lord did turn in his burn, but queried, “Oh fool of fools,
You hideously drool idiocy! What, pray tell, do you know
Of life and love, especially what comes from above, you
Who have never known what is grown in the courts of heaven?
Behold! There is no doubt about love first cultivated and
Made stout in the mystical realms, for claim is first made
Upon the soul, and it is not lame nor is it some pretty game,
But aflame and then ready to proclaim to the world! What,
Then, is your insistence on distance?” With this the king
Of fools had to cool his temper, for he had no reply and
So no way to further ply his trade made of real stupidity;
So he balked and walked away, taking shame with his name.

What the Lord of Lyricism Sees (Part II)

“Oh how love is so cruel!” laughed the king of fools
To the lord of lyricism, still perched as he searched.
“It seems true: One was born to be torn but not by
Any scorn of the other; ha! I wonder, does he realize
What prize is his as he mixes metaphor to score yet
Another tune? Does the duke see or is this a fluke?”
And the king of fools drooled his answer: “My lord,
Love is as tender as the dove, who flies high above
But falls quickly to hard earthen call to crawl among
Beasts of burden; love is delicate.” But the lord said,
“Surely love is also elegant and not desolate; so much
Is evident, which is why love is thus eminent… No,
He simply can’t see the free gift given by the duchess
Of stanza, who sadly stammered ‘fare thee well’ before
She fell from the sky, and ne’er did he utter ‘goodbye,’
But did he ever fly closely by? Truly I do not know
But I note that he still floats in the ethereal mists
Of senryu and such, which is not much in the manner
Of courtship.” But the king of fools quipped, “Ah! my
Lord, perhaps this was not meant to be, for there is no
Rhyme to bind them across space and time, lips to lips,
Hips to hips!” To this the lord of lyricism merely nodded,
Not in cynicism, saying, “We shall yet see what will be.
We shall yet see what will be.”

What Does the Lord of Lyricism See?

Bored, the lord of lyricism looked from his literary perch
In search of something entertaining, merrily sustaining,
Not constraining or draining, perhaps inspiring without
Being tiring; and, lo, did his eyes finally light upon quite
An intriguing sight that would frighten some but rather
Enamoured him: One stout duke of metaphor, a duchess
Of stanza together creating quite the regal extravaganza!
Together they wove their words in their fine poetic cove;
Weaving and weaving more, heaving sighs of satisfaction
Known only to lovers under covers in a blanket of night;
But as the lord of lyricism looked on he could not help
But wonder, was this an heavenly blunder or the thunder
Of fate, for the duke and duchess shared the same heart
But were very far apart in space and time; and the clock
Chimed eleven and heaven rumbled ill-content o’er what
Was meant to be after Cupid bent his bow to sow love
In two hearts, not in parts, but in whole, soul to soul;
He contemplated this, searching his mind, as he perched
And continued to watch this unique scene of what’s rarely
Been; and his smile was not one of hard trial or guile
But delightfully real; ah! what would fate here seal?