Just a Bite

Eve: A second wife, a second chance. You were never given any such reprieve. You did not know of the lies of the snake and the uncaring nature of the maker. You did not realize it cruel to be tested of good and evil when you knew not of the dichotomy- until you tasted the flesh and your eyes opened. In that moment, what did pure and unfiltered knowledge taste like?

(All she wanted was a fig)

Persephone: Homer described you as formidable. True, your teeth were like knives as you took your bite, ruby seeds tumbling from your lips- Hades thought the juice was blood on your chin. He kissed you and all he could taste was sweetness. How did you hide the sharpness of your being so well?

(All she wanted was a pomegranate)

Izanami : You had circled the pillar of heaven with your love. You were supposed to live eternally in the sunrisen lands. And so, wrapped in death with no hope of rescue, all you wanted was brightness for your eyes and sweetness for the tip of your tongue. You ate, teeth sinking deep regardless of what it meant. Was it the juice staining your kimono, or your newly rotting flesh?

(All she wanted was a persimmon)

Xochiquetzal : You were not even able to taste it, before the tree split in two and suddenly you were alone. Juice still stained your fingertips, the fragrance the last remembrance of paradise. The sun had never been so bright, though the world was now so dark. It reminded you of that ill fated fruit, of the sweetness of paradise. Would it all have been worth it if you had only been able to take a bite?

(All she wanted was a passionfruit)

Idunn : Golden and bright, youth eternal in your arms as you harvested the forest’s bounty. You were lured from home with a promise of your interests, by tricksters and ice covered giants. But without you, youth will not last for those left across the rainbow bridge. When you were captured, did you weep for yourself or for the aging?

(All she wanted was an apple)