'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? It is nor hand nor foot,
Nor arm nor face,
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for thy name, which is no part of thee,
Take all myself (II.ii.33-49)
?Don?t you know the importance of a name?? She asked her lover as they waded through a field of wild flowers; cutting through the tall, thick grass as if it were the water they both loved so much. ?I told you it once before.? She turned about to face him, moving backwards and only occasionally tripping over an unseen bump or rock in the flat terrain. His hand was always there to steady her.
?Why be it so important tae know at all, luv? Tis just a name, is all. Call ye wha? I will, ye always be me muirn?n and me wife, no??
She sighed, exasperated, and threw one of the wildflowers she had just picked at his face. ?It?s the most important thing in the world.?
He only batted that missile flower away and grinned at her, ?Now ye be jus? exageratin?, muirn?n.?
?No,? she shook her head, ?you don?t understand.? She looked sad as she turned away from him and started to move through the wall of flowers that encircled them; his fingers gently enclosed her wrist to stop her from moving out of reach.
?Then explain it tae me again,? he begged softly.
?A person can go by many names,? she began quietly, half turning towards him, ?but only one is their true name, bound to their very soul. It is said that only those who know this true name can ever really know a person, know them truly for all they are.?
?A true name?? He scoffed, ?Dinnae be fooled luv. A person can go by many names, any name that pleases himself, an? still be that same person. The name dinnae make the person, luv, the person do.?
?A person is not complete without their name. A name has power; it is their identity, it is who they are. You cannot know someone without knowing their name.? Her hold on the bushel of flowers in her hand tightened, slowly choking the remaining life from them.
?Ye be sayin? tha? I canno? know ye, dinnae know ye,? he had stepped closer to her, his breath tickling the back of her neck as a hand settled on her hip, ?even if I ?ave seen all yer layers luv, seen everythin? tha? ye be, if I jus? call ye? me Jewell??
?Jewell is only a part of who I am?? she started to object but stopped, shivering, as she felt his lips on her ear.
?Fine then,? he whispered and then added ever so softly, ?Eilya.?
He did remember. She had told him it once, not suspecting or knowing that the future would find them here, together like this. To hear such a name, but a fragment of her true name, uttered by the lips of a lover was indescribable. Her whole self?emotionally, physically, magically, spiritually?stirred in response. He felt her tremble as she leaned back against him and his arm wrapped about her as he slowly lowered them both to the ground. ?Why does it affect ye so, luv?? He asked, fingers splayed across her stomach as he held her against him. Anyone with the least bit of supernatural sense could have felt her aura flare up in addition to seeing her physical reaction to that one word.
?A soul name is the most dangerous and precious of all things one possesses. Those who know it not only know that person as intimately as one ever could but they also have complete power over that person. Repeating that name calls them into being. We are bound to do the will of those that know us by the names we are given at birth.?
He looked somewhat horrified, ?An? yet ye told me such without even knowin? me much at all??
?Yes,? she nodded, her head resting comfortably against his chest.
?Why would ye do such a thing, muirn?n, not knowing wha? sort o? man I be? Tae give me such power??
She tilted her head back in order to look up at him, grey eyes open and honest, ?Because I trusted you.?
?But muirn?n??
?No,? she reached up, placing her fingers over his lips to silence him. ?I trusted you. It was stupid, perhaps, but I did. But I am still not as silly as you think me, you only had but a fragment, remember?? She failed to clarify that even a mere fragment could do her much harm.
He kissed her fingertips before she let them fall away, ?But still, muirn?n. Ye play wit fire, luv. What if I ?ad nae been sae taken wit ye? Nae been sae nice?? She turned her head and looked away, feeling his kind reproof keenly. Her thoughts went momentarily to Am?thyst?her little light who had given away her name to one and had paid the price?before they returned to the here and now and she murmured something so quietly he failed to hear it the first time. ?What be tha? ye said, luv??
She looked back to him once more, ?I want you to know the rest of it.? It had not been a decision she had come to lightly. They had given everything to each other but still she had reserved that from him. There was always the what ifs to consider: what if something happened and he turned on her? What if somehow, someone were to take her name from him? What if, what if, what if. Even if he always remained true to her, there was still danger in him knowing her name. Excess emotions of any kind, positive or negative, could become manifest and seek her out for fulfillment. A fit of annoyance or rage directed at her could quickly become her undoing. And not just the undoing of this body, but of the entirety of her being. She didn?t care about the what ifs and endless possibilities for disaster, though, she cared about him. She wanted him to understand the depth of her trust and affection, that she would go as far as to place the well being of everything she was in his hands.
?I be ?onored love, truly, but why? I dinnae need tae know this name tae truly know and love ye, not when it can be sae dangerous tae yerself.?
?I have only ever told one other person my name, Stephen, and even then it was only just part and I would not allow him to use it. I want you to know it.? She paused, running her teeth over her lower lip a moment. The knowledge that she was possibly taking the first step in the direction of her own undoing, setting herself on a path that could lead to the destruction of not only her body but her essence, was brushed aside. ?I want to hear you say it to me,? she reached up, fingertips brushing over his lips this time in a light caress.
He smiled at her, ?Aye luv, if tha?s what ye wish.?
She grinned impishly, the gravity of the situation gone. Placing her hand flat against his chest, she pushed him back to the ground; he didn?t put up much resistance. Trailing kisses to his ear, she whispered the three little words to him that meant her soul: Eilya Fitae Amaavian.
With those three words whispered back, he invoked everything she was, her very essence. It was a call she never could resist. It made her shine brighter than a star.
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? It is nor hand nor foot,
Nor arm nor face,
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for thy name, which is no part of thee,
Take all myself (II.ii.33-49)
?Don?t you know the importance of a name?? She asked her lover as they waded through a field of wild flowers; cutting through the tall, thick grass as if it were the water they both loved so much. ?I told you it once before.? She turned about to face him, moving backwards and only occasionally tripping over an unseen bump or rock in the flat terrain. His hand was always there to steady her.
?Why be it so important tae know at all, luv? Tis just a name, is all. Call ye wha? I will, ye always be me muirn?n and me wife, no??
She sighed, exasperated, and threw one of the wildflowers she had just picked at his face. ?It?s the most important thing in the world.?
He only batted that missile flower away and grinned at her, ?Now ye be jus? exageratin?, muirn?n.?
?No,? she shook her head, ?you don?t understand.? She looked sad as she turned away from him and started to move through the wall of flowers that encircled them; his fingers gently enclosed her wrist to stop her from moving out of reach.
?Then explain it tae me again,? he begged softly.
?A person can go by many names,? she began quietly, half turning towards him, ?but only one is their true name, bound to their very soul. It is said that only those who know this true name can ever really know a person, know them truly for all they are.?
?A true name?? He scoffed, ?Dinnae be fooled luv. A person can go by many names, any name that pleases himself, an? still be that same person. The name dinnae make the person, luv, the person do.?
?A person is not complete without their name. A name has power; it is their identity, it is who they are. You cannot know someone without knowing their name.? Her hold on the bushel of flowers in her hand tightened, slowly choking the remaining life from them.
?Ye be sayin? tha? I canno? know ye, dinnae know ye,? he had stepped closer to her, his breath tickling the back of her neck as a hand settled on her hip, ?even if I ?ave seen all yer layers luv, seen everythin? tha? ye be, if I jus? call ye? me Jewell??
?Jewell is only a part of who I am?? she started to object but stopped, shivering, as she felt his lips on her ear.
?Fine then,? he whispered and then added ever so softly, ?Eilya.?
He did remember. She had told him it once, not suspecting or knowing that the future would find them here, together like this. To hear such a name, but a fragment of her true name, uttered by the lips of a lover was indescribable. Her whole self?emotionally, physically, magically, spiritually?stirred in response. He felt her tremble as she leaned back against him and his arm wrapped about her as he slowly lowered them both to the ground. ?Why does it affect ye so, luv?? He asked, fingers splayed across her stomach as he held her against him. Anyone with the least bit of supernatural sense could have felt her aura flare up in addition to seeing her physical reaction to that one word.
?A soul name is the most dangerous and precious of all things one possesses. Those who know it not only know that person as intimately as one ever could but they also have complete power over that person. Repeating that name calls them into being. We are bound to do the will of those that know us by the names we are given at birth.?
He looked somewhat horrified, ?An? yet ye told me such without even knowin? me much at all??
?Yes,? she nodded, her head resting comfortably against his chest.
?Why would ye do such a thing, muirn?n, not knowing wha? sort o? man I be? Tae give me such power??
She tilted her head back in order to look up at him, grey eyes open and honest, ?Because I trusted you.?
?But muirn?n??
?No,? she reached up, placing her fingers over his lips to silence him. ?I trusted you. It was stupid, perhaps, but I did. But I am still not as silly as you think me, you only had but a fragment, remember?? She failed to clarify that even a mere fragment could do her much harm.
He kissed her fingertips before she let them fall away, ?But still, muirn?n. Ye play wit fire, luv. What if I ?ad nae been sae taken wit ye? Nae been sae nice?? She turned her head and looked away, feeling his kind reproof keenly. Her thoughts went momentarily to Am?thyst?her little light who had given away her name to one and had paid the price?before they returned to the here and now and she murmured something so quietly he failed to hear it the first time. ?What be tha? ye said, luv??
She looked back to him once more, ?I want you to know the rest of it.? It had not been a decision she had come to lightly. They had given everything to each other but still she had reserved that from him. There was always the what ifs to consider: what if something happened and he turned on her? What if somehow, someone were to take her name from him? What if, what if, what if. Even if he always remained true to her, there was still danger in him knowing her name. Excess emotions of any kind, positive or negative, could become manifest and seek her out for fulfillment. A fit of annoyance or rage directed at her could quickly become her undoing. And not just the undoing of this body, but of the entirety of her being. She didn?t care about the what ifs and endless possibilities for disaster, though, she cared about him. She wanted him to understand the depth of her trust and affection, that she would go as far as to place the well being of everything she was in his hands.
?I be ?onored love, truly, but why? I dinnae need tae know this name tae truly know and love ye, not when it can be sae dangerous tae yerself.?
?I have only ever told one other person my name, Stephen, and even then it was only just part and I would not allow him to use it. I want you to know it.? She paused, running her teeth over her lower lip a moment. The knowledge that she was possibly taking the first step in the direction of her own undoing, setting herself on a path that could lead to the destruction of not only her body but her essence, was brushed aside. ?I want to hear you say it to me,? she reached up, fingertips brushing over his lips this time in a light caress.
He smiled at her, ?Aye luv, if tha?s what ye wish.?
She grinned impishly, the gravity of the situation gone. Placing her hand flat against his chest, she pushed him back to the ground; he didn?t put up much resistance. Trailing kisses to his ear, she whispered the three little words to him that meant her soul: Eilya Fitae Amaavian.
With those three words whispered back, he invoked everything she was, her very essence. It was a call she never could resist. It made her shine brighter than a star.