Romeo and Juliet, Nishas FanFic

Romeo and Juliet, The End and New Beginnings
Characters: Romeo, Lady Juliet, Captain Tybalt, Pastor Lawrence
Setting: New York, 1863

 



The first time I glimpsed my sweet Lady Juliet was at a Ball held in her honour when she first arrived at the Five Points in New York at her father's Manor. A Lady of her class far beyond one such as myself, yet I found myself drawn and captured by her unwitting beauty.


I thought of that night as I ran through the streets of New York in search of St Peters Church, the place we had agreed upon to meet. Praying that I was not too late, if Juliet's father or Tybalt knew of our meeting and she was discovered all would be lost. Our plan had been to meet at the dock, board a ship to take us back to England were we would have journeyed to Gretna Green to be married before her father could stop us. It is the only place that would marry us.


I ran with fear in my heart. When Mercurio found me and said the plan was lost, that Juliet swore she would rather die than be without me and she was coming to St Peters Church to end her life. My world had stopped, everything that had once mattered; the rebellion, Tybalt's schemes to wed Juliet, it all mattered naught. For losing her would be a fate far worse than death.


As I rounded the last corner and the Church came into view the man that has plagued our love from the start was charging toward me, like a raging bull intent on destroying all in its path. Tybalt, stopped, pulled his pistol from his hip and faced me with a look of pure loathing upon his face. 'I see I am not too late for your sweet gathering fair Romeo', Tybalt sneered. 

I stopped five paces from him and held my palms open, my only goal to end this and reach my Lady Love. 'I have nothing to say to you Tybalt, Juliet awaits me; dead. I received news that she has come to St Peters to end her life, there is nothing between us left to quarrel'. A look of pain, followed by anger crossed his face as his pistol arm faltered before dropping completely. 'You lie, Romeo, for she would never do such a thing, she loves her father too much for it. But in saying that I will see for myself and possibly arrest you for it.'


Not wasting my time to reply I stepped around him intent to see Juliet myself, if she is dead I will soon follow. A world without Juliet is not a world worth living in. Taking the church steps two at a time I burst through the ornate wooden doors with a heavy heart dreading that which I was now sure I would find. The church seemed empty at first glance, but there at the stone alter I spied a figure lying still. My heart froze and seemed never to beat again. I recognized the shining brilliance of Juliet's chocolate wavy hair. Her face turned away from me but I knew it to be her. Running towards the alter where she lay upon I collapsed to my knees at seeing her lovely face with a pallid colour and her eyes closed. There was a single tear slipping from her eye seeming frozen on the journey across her cheek. I raised my hand to her face, finding it still warm, hope shot through me thinking I might still have time, I placed my head to her chest even though I could not see her breast rise and fall I prayed for the music that will bring my heart to beat again.


The utter devastation on Romeo's face was more than enough confirmation for Tybalt that Lady Juliet was dead. His hatred for Romeo did not lessen but he thought that the pain of Juliet's death resting on his shoulders was enough to ruin the high and mighty Blackguard. So he turned and left the Church.


Romeo looked behind him as he heard the Church doors shut with a bang, I guess Tybalt had seen all that he needed to. The bastard was gone, that in it self was enough for Romeo. He leaned over Juliet again, thinking he was imaging it before; but no, there it was the very soft barley detectable beat. The sweetest, most magical sound that Romeo had ever heard; Juliet's heart beat. To anyone looking at her, Juliet appeared dead, still and cold. Her chest barely rose, but the subtle hum of her heart beat was there if you pressed your head to her chest.


A soft clearing of a throat broke Romeo from the symphony he listened to, for a second he thought Tybalt had returned. He swung around pulling his dagger out, ready to attack. Instead he saw Pastor Lawrence standing behind him with a sly smirk across his face. 'Fair Romeo, I see our ruse had worked'.


'What do you mean Father? 'How is this possible?'.


Pastor Lawrence smiled, 'simple Romeo, Juliet came here with the intent to end her life. I could not abide by this fair creature taking her life in the name of love. I had to help. I gave a sleeping drought that will give the illusion of death to anyone just looking at her. However by the next moons dawn she will awake as though she has just had a long sleep. I am glad I have the chance to speak with you before you tried to follow her or all would have been for nothing.' Romeo opened his mouth to answer but Pastor Lawrence help up his hand, 'we must make haste, I have arranged passage for you both to England, from there you are on your own. Carry her I will take you to the carriage.'


Two years later Romeo watched over his little family sleeping in his bed, his beautiful wife and baby daughter, Emilia.


Sweet Juliet how our time was thought to have ended yet here we find ourselves again. I was loathe to think of when we planned to join together and instead found ourselves on the alter before death, in a crypt with my life's blood to be spilled before us.


If not for the kindness of Pastor Lawrence we both would have perished that night.

"What's in a name? That which we call a roseBy any other name would smell as sweet."