Excellent From the Sublime to the Ridiculous. Garden of Earthly Delights. by Terry Reilly Opposites Attract writing prompt entry Artwork by Raoul D'Harmental at FanArtReview.com

Warning: The author has noted that this contains the highest level of sexual content. It was another perfect day in the Garden of Eden. Well, perfect for some. Adam, as usual, was thriving on the peace and tranquility. He was quietly happy just pottering around feeling entirely at one with the glorious pastoral scene he inhabited. Eden, truly, was a gift for all the senses. The spongy green sward beneath his feet served as a lambent counterpoint to the variegated leaves on the trees and the multicoloured hues of the flowers which blossomed everywhere in profusion, releasing their sweet scents into the warm, enfolding air. Adam's naked body was sensuously caressed by the gentle zephyrs which flowed like aerial tides. The tinkling waters of the stream were almost musical in their celestial harmony, echoing the sweet song he could hear from gold and crimson birds. Adam knelt, cupping his hands, drinking greedily from the cool stream. How could it taste like liquid honey? Well, after all, this was Paradise. Perfect, yes. Not far away Eve was climbing a tree, trying to reach the upper branches. She had long since tired of the unchanging blandness of her surroundings. Nothing unexpected ever happened. There were no threats to face, no challenges to overcome. Even the busy bees pollinating the flowers seemed devoid of aggression. She could catch them easily and they made no attempt to string her in defence. Eve was bored. There was no fun. No action. No...mischief. Even that untrustworthy serpent who sometimes hissed revolutionary sentiments seemed all mouth and no trousers. That was a strange saying, mused Eve. What on Earth were trousers? And what was Earth, anyway? Eve jumped from the tree, sprawling upon landing in the cushiony grass. See? No pain, no scratches nor grazes. Nothing to stir the emotions apart from those linked to aesthetics. Adam looked up hearing his soulmate approaching. He had been worried about her recently. She seemed restless, dissatisfied. Disgruntled, even. Why? How could that be? "Good morning, best friend," he declared in welcome. "Another perfect day." Eve looked him up and down. She had always realised they were made differently, but had never really given much thought as to why. That thing between his legs. She had seen him using it to urinate, but she could urinate without needing such an appendage. It must serve another purpose. "Adam," she began hesitantly. "Don't you sometimes think, even wish, there was more to life than...", she spread both arms expansively, "all of this?" Adam looked genuinely puzzled. "Well, no, actually. How can you improve on perfection?" Eve continued to stare at her counterpart. Recently she had been experiencing strange stirrings in her body. At first, she tried to ignore them. But they were insistent, unsettling. They seemed to indicate something was missing. She felt incomplete in some way. Unfulfilled. If things were to change she would have to initiate the process. Adam was evidently free of such internal longings. Eve did her best to share her perturbation with Adam. She was far from sure he understood. "So, shall we do something naughty?" he asked. "Something daring, adventurous. Forbidden?" Eve nodded slowly, wondering if she was getting her message across. "Righty-ho," chirped Adam, looking at the abundant apple tree beside him. "The Creator expressly forbade us to pick the fruit from this tree, didn't he? I think he called it the Tree of Knowledge." Eve, still staring, was silent. That didn't feel like the transformative deed she was seeking. Adam reached up and plucked a rosy apple from the tree. Neither of them had noticed the serpent, now writhing between their ankles. "That's the idea," encouraged the snake. "Now you must both bite it, and swallow its flesh." "Whoopee!" chortled Adam. "This IS fun! I feel quite impish!" Eve took the apple from Adam, removed a section with her white teeth and handed it back to Adam,who replicated her actions. As the serpent slithered away, chuckling triumphantly, both Adam and Eve began to feel something changing in their minds and bodies. These two very different beings, physically and temperamentally, began to reconcile those differences, seeking a shared identity. Now they both wanted fiercely to do something groundbreaking, to share and intermingle their corporeality. Eve was struck by the dramatic change in the size and orientation of the thing between Adam's legs. The warmth and wetness she felt between her thighs must surely be connected. Relying purely on instinct, the two beings effortlessly became one, gaining knowledge of the pleasures of biological love in a manner which satisfied both of them reciprocally. Adam's eyes were opened from the sensual torpor within which he had previously drifted. Eve understood what had been disturbing her, and realised what she had been missing. Little did they both know in that moment of epiphany that, for them, and their descendants, nothing would ever be the same again. They would incur the wrath of their Creator; forfeit their privileged status as residents of the Glorious Garden; and discover the perils and challenges of life in the territorial dimension, bereft of God's protective, all-encompassing Love. Writing Prompt Write a true or fictional story or essay about a couple who have opposing views on any issue(s), political, religious, etc. minimum 300 words. Author Notes Yet another retelling of the story of Original Sin, but in the imagined context of an Adam and Eve who have very different outlooks on life but despite that develop a mutual attraction - with profound consequences. The title is the title of a painting by Hieronymus Bosch, depicting the bizarre and chaotic Hell on Earth which ensues/ensued when human passions are/were untempered and unbridled.

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