Knight of Cups

Tailed Charge

the cercaria larva of Fasciola hepatica, which swims out and waits on a wet leaf

The Knight of Cups rides slowly with his cup held out, the romantic on a quest. Knights in the other suits charge. This one courts.

Inside the snail the fluke multiplies into many cercariae, tailed larvae that swim out into the ditch. They don't chase anything. They climb a blade of grass or a sprig of watercress at the water's edge, drop their tails, and wrap themselves in a tough coat. Then they wait, sometimes for months, as a speck of dew on a leaf, for a sheep, a cow, or a person with a salad.

This is the most honest portrait of seduction in the deck. Make yourself very attractive, sit very still, throw away the tail you swam in on, and let the right mouth come to you. The charge is short and the waiting is long, and the waiting is the whole art. The Knight's opportunity is devotion that doesn't need to rush. His blind spot is the romantic's oldest one: he has planned every step up to the moment of being chosen and nothing at all about what happens after he's swallowed.

Once you're chosen, the story is somebody else's.

Scene: a green leaf beaded with dew at dawn, one bead slightly brighter than the rest, and the discarded tail of a tiny swimmer drifting away in the ditch below.

Prompt: Describe a time you waited a long while to be chosen. Would you do it again, now that you know what came after?