A Song for Two

O! How the eternal struggle of the artiste arrests my soul so! Whatever will I do?

Huh?

Ho, traveler! Mayhap the fabled tales of my honeyed words were the winds that carried you to my door once more?

Err... Not quite. You seem a little down at the moment. Something wrong?

O-Oh, you saw that? *sigh*

I'm suffering from a spot of writer's block. I have to come up with something quickly. I feel like I'll never write again if I don't.

Oh yeah, I forgot you were a bard, Henry.

You really helped us out with your poetic skill before.

Always happy to see my art aid others. But I fear the last time may have been just that. I just can't compose anything good anymore!

So that's how it is...

We're in no rush for any new material, so just take some time off and I'm sure the inspiration will come right back to you.

Hey, Aldo. What if we give him a hand with his new material? I've always wanted to try my hand at that kind of stuff. It'll be fun.

Fun? Nah, I'm no good at writing songs and stuff.

Trust me, nobody's expecting to see you of all people spitting bars.

W-What's that supposed to mean?

Ugh! You're so clueless. Come here for a sec.

Wh-What?

*whisper whisper*

S-Sooo... You just got to get your, um, "creative juices flowing" again. Riiiiiight?

Y-Yes, that's right. But it's easier said than done. Inspiration doesn't come crashing through the roof just like that, you know.

Uh, then how about we gooo... ...Outsiiiiiiide?

Hmmm... That might not be a bad idea. But wandering about aimlessly won't do...

Don't worry about thaaaaaat! Just leave it to uuuuuus, we'll take you someplace goood!

Oh. Well, sure.

Awesooome! First stop is on the western side of the villaaaaaage!

How long are you going to keep singing your words like that?

Ask Amy.

What do you think? There's nothing quite like standing at the edge of a bottomless pit to get those juices going! According to Amy, anyway.

Not necessary, Aldo!

Aha. Well... This is certainly out of my comfort zone. Maybe a little TOO out of it, but here goes nothing.

Ohhh...OHHH...!

Feeling any different?

I...I think so.

M-My heart is beating faster than an unbridled horse in a frenzied b-bid for escape from captivity!

Wha?

I-I-I'm a-afraid of heights! That's why m-my legs are trembling so hard! A-Any moment now and the abyss will take me! But now I...I actually think that death by falling down the side of a giant ravine might not be so bad after all! Indeed! HAHAH!

Oh geez, no, no, no! Why didn't you tell us earlier?!

Damn it, Henry! You should have said something BEFORE you started hearing the call of the void.

Well, I didn't want to turn down what could potentially be a terrific opportunity to feel something new.

It didn't have to be a life-threatening endeavor, though.

But thanks to that near-death experience, I believe I have tasted something quite special that I wouldn't have found elsewhere.

You've thought of something you can use in your songs?!

I have indeed! A poem about exploring the mental labyrinth that we call fear. It's not at all what I wanted to write now, but it's something I can use later, I guess.

So Amy's ravine plan was perhaps massively off the mark, but not entirely a waste of time?

Exactly. So, thanks for that. Now, on to the next arresting stimulus!

All right then.

Where to now, Amy?

Aldo! You already forgot that you said we would try the Mine next? Man, your memory is just TERRIBLE these days.

You're determined to keep this up, aren't you?

Oho, how very intriguing! Until now, I've never taken the time to get out and visit the Mine. Shame on me.

Wait, that probably means we shouldn't have brought you he...

I mean, nothing.

Worry not, for to do so would be both unfounded and unnecessary! Had I not come here I would never get to feel this ambience for myself.

Okay. How's it feel?

Aldo! Can't you feel it too? The softly swirling dust and dank... The furtive madness in the air that their squirming, snake-like splendor of a marriage so sweetly tempts!

The sensation that this creeping stillness and dancing shadow are, moment by moment, worming away at your very soul...

Why do humans fear the dark so? Moreover, why is the man who abandons himself to the pursuit of the answer a fool?

Huh?

No...fear not the dark, my friend. To embrace it, nurture it, and reap its fruit: THAT is all the abyss demands.

Are...you okay, Henry?

Let us partake of it, here and now! Come on, Aldo! Praise be to the darkness! Let the feast...BEGIN!

Henry! What the heck is wrong with you?!

*sharp intake of breath*

Huh? Wh-What was I doing just now?

That's what we wanna know! You just started coming out with some really weird stuff and scared the hejeebies out of us.

Hmm, I see. I might know what caused that.

Are you okay? What happened? Wait a minute, don't tell me...

Yes. I am, in fact, afraid of the dark.

I knew it! This is why I told you, you have to mention these things to us ahead of time!

B-But I just couldn't say no to you guys and waste what could be an exciting, new opportunity!

*sigh* Is having a screw or two loose a requirement for bards, by any chance?

Never mind. We should focus on getting you out of here.

Oh, don't you worry about me. Just a little longer and the power of the dark will be mine. I almost taste it. Heh heh heh...

Yeah, no. We're leaving now.

Where to next, my friends? I'm actually rather excited to see what else you have in store.

Amy?

Hmm... You know, Henry, I was wondering... Would the poem you're trying to write happen to be something that makes you feel all warm and gentle and kinda fuzzy inside?

You've seen right through me, haven't you?

Then it's settled! I know precisely the place for that. And guess what, it's right in the middle of the village.

Really now? That DOES sound interesting!

Huh? Hey, wait up, you guys!

Here we are.

Oho...

If I'm not wrong, these are the flowers Sylvia planted herself, aren't they?

How'd you know? I honestly thought you were the type of guy who'd walk past them without noticing.

Ouch! Little harsh, don't you think? But I guess you're not wrong.

My poetic genius does not exempt me from man's predisposition to tiring of one delight after another all too quickly. Perhaps, then, we are all the more obliged to revisit former pleasures and seek to draw from them amusement anew...

Go on...

O, but how many an obstruction precludes me from doing so! The inspiration is so close, yet it is as if some devious imp continually plucks it from my reach the instant I make to seize it. Zounds! I'll never conquer the devil at this rate...

Oh. Maybe we should try another different location?

I think you're a little too fixated on the physicality of the flowers.

Excuse me?!

Hey, now. I know you're trying to help, Amy, but telling a bard how to do his own job is crossing the line, don't you think?

Well, what do you see when you look at these flowers, Aldo?

Me? Err, let me think. I see...

I guess I see something beautiful thriving thanks to Sylvia's painstaking love and care. A representation of her kind nature, in a way.

THAT'S IT!

Wha? Where?!

If there were a hole here right now, I would cast myself into it with gusto! I can hardly call myself a bard if I restrict my interpretations to the physical and ignore the beauty that exists beyond! That! Is! IT, I say! The emotions from which these flowers were given life and strength... THAT is what I have been seeking!

Breathe, Henry! Breathe!

And there it is. THERE IT IS! Without exaggeration, the brightest, most striking flash of inspiration I have ever had!

There's no time to waste! I must immortalize this brilliant, overwhelming passion in melodious verse AT ONCE!

NOW WHERE'S MY QUILL?!

Uh... All's well that ends well, I guess?

All thanks to you, Aldo.

I didn't really do anything, but...

Well, whatever. I'm glad that's the end of that. And Henry seems happier now too!

He sure does.