Keep Your Mouth Shut

In a time before cars, there was a large village with a grand castle at the center. The people lived quite peacefully, but like all civilizations, hardship and misfortune did visit from time to time.

Theo had just finished lunch with his fiancée and her mother. He was preparing to leave.

“Thank you again for inviting us over, Theo,” said his future mother-in-law as she washed the plates.

“You don’t have to do that, mother,” Cassandra said.

“I made most of the dirty dishes,” her mother replied. “And it’s the least I can do for my son.”

“Are you leaving so soon, Theo?” Cassandra asked.

“Yes,” Theo replied. “I have an audience with the king.”

Just then, Theo’s friend walked into the house.

“You’re late, Mr. Anton Greenfield,” Cassandra responded with her hands on her hips. “We are already finished eating.”

“Theo, were you about to leave without me?” Anton asked.

“Don’t stress, Anton,” Theo assured. “You don’t need to accompany me. I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.”

A dish fell and broke.

“You’re going to do what?!” Cassandra’s mother blurted from the kitchen.

The others paused in silence.

Cassandra’s mother came from the kitchen, drying her hands on her apron. “What are you going to talk to the king about?” she asked.

“My business is flourishing,” Theo explained. “But the king has prevented some materials from being imported. And that can set me back more than I’m comfortable with. Quite frankly, he is a fool. And I am tired of all his silly decisions that come back around and bite us all in the behind.”

Cassandra’s mother walked closer to Theo. “I understand that you are upset, Theo. But mind what you say and how you say it. The king is a rash man. King Life is not a man to be trifled with.”

“I’m only going to talk to him,” Theo assured. “I won’t throw any fists.”

Cassandra’s mother winced with her eyebrows raised. Then she gave a gentle smile. “Be careful,” she said.

Theo and Cassandra walked outside, holding hands. They turned to each other.

“Seven more days, my love,” Cassandra grinned.

“I’ll be the happiest man you’ve ever seen,” Theo replied.

“Before you know it, they’ll be little feet walking around this house.”

“I’m glad we found each other.”

“I’m glad I’ll be yours.”

“I’m glad your mother is doing the dishes.”

They both laughed.

Cassandra waved goodbye as Theo walked along the dirt slope that lead to the castle.

Anton came out of the house. “I guess I’ll be heading home,” he said.

“How are those singing lessons?” Cassandra asked.

“They are going great,” Anton answered. He started to get woozy.

Before he stumbled, she caught him.

“The king hasn’t allowed that medicine yet?” Cassandra asked.

“So you know about me. Is it that obvious? No, the king has not allowed it. Don’t tell Theo about my illness yet. I was hoping to avoid fading out in front of him. I don’t want him to worry right now.”

As Theo walked on the dirt road, passing by village houses, an old lady approached him.

“A few days ago, I heard you had a meeting scheduled with King Life,” the old lady said.

“Yes. No one is expressing to him the damage he is causing.”

“You’re going to him with a qualm?”

“We have to stand up for ourselves.”

“Yes. That is true. You can stand up to an authority figure when necessary, but child, do that without regretting your decision.”

“I’m not afraid of him.”

“It is clear that you don’t know King Life or how rough he can be.”

“I don’t care.”

“You need to care. You know not what you do.”

The old lady sighed.

“I am going to argue my points to him,” Theo explained.

“You ought not argue with a fool, child,” the woman responded. “He dubbed himself Life. That’s not even his real name. He believes that he is so important and as vital as life itself.”

“Surely he can be reasoned with,” Theo said.

“Maybe. But have you not heard of what Proverbs says? When you argue with a fool, you become a fool.”

“I’m no fool. I’ll see to it that my points are made. And I’m doing it my way.”

With a soft smile, the old woman gently touched Theo on the shoulder and bid him farewell.

Not long after, Theo stood in front of royal red doors. He had to look up to see the top of the doors.

Before he could wonder what to do next, the doors began to open. A guard was on the other side and escorted Theo through the castle. They approached a long line of people.

Theo waited and waited. The line lead to a door. People were going inside, making their partitions made known to the king and then they left the same way they came in.

Eventually it was about to be Theo’s turn. He was next in line.

A guard stood at the door. “You’re almost up, kid,” he said. “I wonder what brings you here.”

“The king is about to cause some headaches to my business,” Theo replied. “I’m here to straighten him out.”

“Whoa, whoa, kid,” the guard said, taken aback. “Listen, sometimes King Life does things we don’t agree to. But sometimes we have to make due with what we are given.”

“I hear you.”

“Tough guy, huh? Don’t act like you don’t care. Just mind your tongue. I wish you the best, kid.”

Soon, the doors opened and Theo walked in. He saw the king sitting on his throne. There was a white lion resting on the floor beside the throne.

The man in front of Theo was still talking to the king.

“The king has a lion?” Theo asked.

“The lion’s name is Light,” the guard said. “I think he is albino. He is actually a wild lion. One day, he just strolled in here like he owned the place. He dwells with us. He dwells with King Life. The king loves that. He feels a sense of honor. That lion is a mystery.

The man in front of Theo finished talking and left the room.

Theo walked to the king.

“Greetings,” the king said. “What brings you here?” He looked at a scroll. “Theo, was it?”

“I’m here to speak to you about my business,” Theo explained.

“Go on.”

“For years we have had southern goods imported into our village, but recently, that has not been allowed. I would like to request that you please allow those goods back into our village.”

“Southern goods, you say?”

The king leaned to the side and scratched his cheek.

“You are probably going to have to start a different business,” the king said smugly.

“Sir, that isn’t something I can simply do,” Theo replied. “It has taken years for my business to be what it is today. As you can figure, it comes from my father and his father. It is what I specialize in. It would be a great dishonor if I threw my father’s work away.”

“Well, you are going to have to figure something else out,” the king responded.

“Look, my father trusted me with his work. I told him that I would make him proud. How can I do that if I give up on the business?”

“And where is your father now?” the king asked.

“He passed away last year.”

“I supposed he won’t mind too much then, will he?”

“Would it have changed anything if he were still here?”

“No.”

“Sir, this business is one of the last things I have of my father’s. I thought this hindrance of goods might be a small issue. But now I’m realizing it could last longer than I expected.”

“I don’t think there is much that I will do for you.”

“But why, sir?”

“Are you finished? Is that all?”

Theo sighed. He looked up. And then he looked to the floor and scratched his temple.

“Listen here, you scraggly beard, bug eyed trash. I didn’t come here for you to brush me aside. But since you are clearly not going to do anything, I’ll be more blunt. You have been messing a lot of things up for the people down there. You don’t know how to make good agreements with other civilizations. You put yourself first.”

The king stuck his nose up, unbothered.

“He isn’t trying to reason with you,” a guard whispered. “Sometimes, words aren’t enough.”

“You aren’t fit to be king,” Theo said.

“Escort this boy out,” the king commanded.

Theo went home, walking under a moonlit night. He prepared for bed contemplating how he would resolve his problem.

The next morning, Theo woke up to a knock on his door. He got out of bed and opened his door. Anton was there.

“Good morning, Theo,” Anton greeted. “How did things go? I’m scheduled to see the king tomorrow, and I’m hoping it won’t be a hassle to get him to understand what I have to say.”

“The guy is a knucklehead,” Theo said.

“Why do you have a basket of lemons on your porch?”

Theo looked toward the ground and saw the lemons. Then, he noticed some of the other villagers looking. They seemed distraught.

Cassandra’s mother came rushing to the door. “What did you do?” she asked with desperation.

“Did you leave these lemons at my door?”

“No. This is something the king does. And it never means anything good.”

Suddenly, some of the king's mean looking guards came. They took Theo by the arms and led him away.

Eventually, Theo was brought into the king’s throne room and tossed to the ground.

The king was holding back a smile. “Did you think you were getting off free from your little conundrum yesterday?”

“What’s going on?”

Some guards came into the throne room. They held Cassandra by her arms. She was panicking and trying to keep composure.

“Why is she here?!” Theo shouted.

“You will soon know. And you’ll never forget.”

A man cloaked in black entered the room with an axe.

“Oh no,” the couple uttered under their breath.

“Why would you do this?!” Theo cried. “This isn’t fair! I gave you words and in return you give me death? It’s not an even trade! They were just words, merely sounds that come from our mouths!

“But those sounds have meaning,” the king responded. “Many people don’t think before they speak. The common man can’t always afford what they say. Even words can have consequences. And that is something you will never forget.”

The guards kneeled Cassandra down.

“No!” Theo shouted. “I’m sorry, sir. I’m sorry, King Life. Please spare her. Please. Please!”

“It’s too late, boy.”

Theo began resisting the guards that now held him.

The executioner raised the axe.

Cassandra didn’t want to waste her last moments only crying. She turned to Theo and softly cried, “I love you.”

The king flicked his hand. The axe came down with swift precision and struck the young woman.

Theo began roaring and wailing like a mad man. The future he will never have flashed before his eyes.

“Take him away,” the king said. “Set fire to his home and business. Put him behind bars for the night so he can cry it out. ”

The night came.

Anton was in a dark cave-like corridor lit with a few candles under the castle. A guard stood in front of him.

“The king says Theo can leave tomorrow morning,” the guard said. “You can’t see him now, but I have a letter he wrote for you. The letter is in regards to your meeting with the king soon. When Theo handed it to me, he wanted me to tell you that no matter how sad and angry you are about what the king did, don’t let it get the best of you. Life can be difficult, yet we are mostly still expected to keep composure out in public. But thankfully, loved ones and reasonable people will understand, even if we lose composure for a time.”

After he was handed the letter, Anton walked away with anger and tears in his eyes. He didn’t make it far before leaning on a wall and slouching down to the ground.

Wiping away tears, Anton opened the letter and began to read.

*See “Keep Your Mouth Shut” by Anthony Green on YouTube