A Terrible Bind

The necklace you have moved heaven and earth to retrieve is in my mouth. They presently coil around my great cheek teeth. Did you think it was a family keepsake gifted to you by mother or father? No, I spat it out into your crib before you knew how to speak. I am merciful to all creatures pre-alphabetic. Come closer and inspect my face. Count the black rosettes that swim across my golden landscape of revenge and suspicion. What is not muscle is claw, what is not claw is tooth, and what is not tooth, is camouflage. You should remember me from your coloring books slumbering on tree boughs. I am Au-ku, Leopard of Ceaselessness, and I have been awake all this time to your dismay. There is no such thing as misplaced items, we simply take back our charms that fall idol to neglect. Should I recharge it and give to another? Remember the time you clutched my jewelry to walk in pitch darkness without fear? Now you mingle my enchantment with store bought pollution. Versatility amounts to rejection. What was bestowed to you as an infant was never meant to dangle with a companion piece. I taste pearl with undertones of Amethyst. My breath smells of jasmine. Do not tear up before me. My toleration for tantrum is small. The sound of weeping did not touch my ears when you sailed through the most rigorous exams. Such a pristine scholarship for a lazy girl. Your eyes were perfectly dry as romantic suitors lined up for your attention. Did your doorstep want for any token of affection? Neither was sobbing a response to impeccable health. No bones broken or bloody or cough plagued has ever you. The sick bed pleaded for your body and was denied by intercession of your necklace. Be contented in what have gleaned over these carefree moments of favor. Yet you still burn for the jewelry that flosses my teeth. Since you persist in reclaiming this talisman, I will extend a challenge. You have two hands, so it is only right that I allow you two changes to recover lost power. Get back your necklace if you possess the speed. Before accepting this opportunity, think about the convenience of wholeness. You wash, cloth, pluck fruit, hold children, applaud well doing, and caress the faces of your adoration. Amputation is too high a price. Turn back now and restore yourself to normal life. Elizabeth made her choice with a downpour of much sweat. To this day, the world marvels over the one handed best selling author going on ten years.