YEAR OF GREAT MEDLARS: THE LOCKET

In El semen de los ahorcados, to be more precise its play-within-the-fic The Year of Great Medlars, the young and queer tragic hero, Dauphin Francis (played by Courfeyrac), wears a golden, heart-shaped locket for half of the play. The real locket is at the British Museum, and he wears a really realistic replica:

The locket, of solid gold inlaid with pearl and rubies (the original; what we see on stage is only a replica), and what happens to it, are central to the play: it highlights both his fear of commitment and the vagaries of fortune.

On both sides, the locket has the word toujours, "forever," in inlaid ruby letters. The obverse (front) side has the Tudor Rose and the Granada (pomegranate) of the Catholic Royals growing on entwining bushes, while the reverse side has the initials H (for Henry VIII) and K (for Katherine of Aragón) tied together with a Gordian knot - the symbols of the Dauphin's future in-laws; he is betrothed to the future Bloody Mary.

The teenage crown prince of France is supposed to wear the locket for at least one month, and then cut a lock of his dark hair and place it inside the locket, which will be shipped to England as confirmation of the betrothal... Francis and Mary were already betrothed as infants in the cradle, but he is afraid of commitment and he has discovered that he prefers men to women (sexually). So he refuses to place the lock of his hair inside, but wears the locket at court, to keep up appearances. Then, suddenly, the betrothal is annulled (due to Mary's parents' divorce and her being declared a bastard, unfit to marry a crown prince), and the empty locket is shipped back to England... The conversation that comes after is what it all hinges upon:

FRANCIS (Courfeyrac): I can't believe I've got such good luck! That bloody Mary is now declared a bastard, unfit to tie the knot with me! Toujours my arse (pardon my French)!

SEBASTIAN (Combeferre): Really? How come, Your Grace?

FRANCIS: Her Papa just divorced and remarried that court lady, what's her name, Anne Boleyn; and her mother now lives as a nun in a convent. So Mary is a bastard now, they're expecting a male heir instead...

SEBASTIAN: You're not wearing the locket... 

FRANCIS: As soon as I heard the news, I had it shipped back to England. Empty, without a lock of my hair inside. You see, she was totally unfit... No matter how many languages she speaks, or how well she plays the harpsichord, or if she has been educated by Lluís Vives himself; I don't care at all! That portrait of her I saw was pretty scary, with that flaming red hair and those piercing eyes... but now I've thought of something that you must listen to.

SEBASTIAN: I'm all ears. What have you thought of, Your Grace?

FRANCIS: Until right now, I was completely carefree. I had endless freedom and no one, no king or courtiers, to hold me back. But being completely carefree just meant that there was no one to care FOR, and no one who cares FOR YOU. All I've found myself wanting to do... was to be by your side, to tell you about all of it... Every detail, every curiosity... I want to share all of it with my favourite person. So I found myself coming back to you more and more often. I am no longer afraid of commitment, for I have found someone I can commit to, finally... 

SEBASTIAN: And that means?

FRANCIS: It was very unlike me. For the first time in forever, I want to stay in one place. Have someone to come home to, someone who can quench my thirst. Not only for drink, but also that thirst for something I have always been missing.

SEBASTIAN: For love?

FRANCIS: Love? Maybe, even if love between two men is forbidden and star-crossed. We'll disguise it as friendship between a prince and his secretary/squire/cupbearer. The court and the army will only see two good friends... You could use my help more than ever; and I am happy to oblige you!

SEBASTIAN: Why?

FRANCIS: You manage your responsibilities, and I contribute mine. We get along splendidly. We're two halves of a whole, you're the ice to my fire, the part of me that I have always missed... So much talking has made me thirsty, couldn't you pour me a cordial on the rocks?

SEBASTIAN: Now I am the one who is happy to oblige you! (He leaves and then returns with a carafe of cordial on ice and two glasses, which he pours to the dauphin and to himself. Francis drains his glass at one gulp, while Sebastian only sips). You should not drink so quickly, Your Grace; you will catch a cold.

FRANCIS: But my throat was on fire! I'll remember it for the next time. By the way... What do you put in that cordial that makes it taste so good?

SEBASTIAN: Ice from the Alps... and it's infused with cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and elder flowers. And a huge dash of sugar! But what counts the most is the secret ingredient: it's made above all with love. I always think of you and of how much you will enjoy both the coolness and the taste, as I make all my cordials.

FRANCIS: And now I am thirsty for something more... can you embrace this poor sinner and kiss his lips, until his thirst is quenched?

SEBASTIAN: I am once more happy to oblige. (Both hide behind a pillar, embrace, and kiss passionately).