A Fated Separation
*Inspired by Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Klimt’s The Kiss, and the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.
When I first encountered the reinterpretation of the Orpheus myth in Portrait of a Lady on Fire, I immediately thought of Skids and Rung.
Skids would never turn back. He would keep moving forward because he wanted to save Rung. The only reason he would ever look back is because Rung called his name.
Rung was not someone waiting to be rescued. He knew his choice, and he knew the cost. He chose to become the one who remained in the darkness, the memory Skids would carry forever.
And Skids could never blame him.
“He called me back, and I turned around. I couldn’t have done otherwise.”
They both chose the way they loved each other, and yet that love became the reason they had to part.
Klimt’s The Kiss captures a moment of intimacy that feels eternal. I imagine Skids and Rung sharing a moment like this——knowing that fate may take something away from them, but not being able to erase the happiness they had in that moment.