Episode #210: How We Got Here From There {5th}

This photo was actually taken on December 28, 2023. Four aisles down on an endcap was/is a display for St. Patrick's Day. Feel free to either facepalm yourself to your knees or scrape the bottom of your jaw off the floor with a spatula. You're welcome.

Part the 1st is here, waiting for the 2nd, the 3rd and the 4th.

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While for the most part, I have diligently worked on showing the (mostly) tolerant side of homosexuality, I still needed to have a balanced and more nuanced perspective showing how cruel the world can be to the gay community. 

Adeola, who is Jhon's ex-wife, is even more of a complex character than Myla. So let's get that T.L.;D.R. out of the way. Adeola is a lesbian with almost zero (physical) interest in men. Was forced to marry and divorce Jhon and yet still pines for him.

Obviously, there is a cargo ship more to unpack here, and I will do my best to move beyond the preceding 24 word T.L.;D.R.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I do like creating ruthless corporate entities out of historically corrupt entities, e.g. Hell and Purgatory, or in this particular case, the Aztec Empire. For the purpose of this story, I have turned the Aztec Empire into a criminal corporation on the scale of a well oiled drug cartel, in that they have their fingers in all kinds of illegalities. And yes, I have brought along their more unsavory practices into the mix.

Anyways, just like with most criminal organizations, the Aztecs have the strange standards when it comes to certain things, like homosexuality.

Note: I know that this isn't historically accurate. It's called "artistic license".

With the Aztecs, I have made their legal system based on the old nineties policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". In a nutshell, there were certain military rules and regulations on the books regarding homosexual behaviors, but so long as you didn't tell them, they didn't ask about it nor did they prosecute. But if someone does tell, they are legally bound to investigate. For an added bonus, I made it so that the person making the accusation suffered the exact same punishment as the guilty party.

Enter our mercurial heroine Adeola.

I decided from the beginning to make Adeola a truly unique individual, which was directly inspired by the original version of this story. So, I made Adeola a solidly strong lesbian. Now I know you're saying to yourself, "Whaaaaaaaat?", but there is a method to my madness.

To begin at the end, with the end being Adeola summoned out of her ex-husband's collar. Why was she there to begin with?

Well, here is how it unfolds, which is based on info that comes out in dribs and drabs throughout the series. As I'd mentioned a few paragraphs earlier, I created a judicial system that has an official "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. If you know anything about US history from the mid-90's, the military had a policy of not inquiring about a soldier's sexuality, nor did they expect you to tell them (please see the preceding paragraph for a longer explanation, then Google the above phrase for an in-depth explanation).

Unlike the real world policy, this fantasy version would investigate if someone made a complaint. Someone did and Adeola was convicted for being a lesbian. Her two-part sentence was carried out, think Middle East/Inquisition style punishment for the first part, with the second part being an arranged marriage to Jhon.

Another concept I decided to introduce was that the Aztecs don't believe in divorce, only forced annulments performed by the judicial system. This was done to her because Jhon fulfilled his onerous contract with the Aztecs, but she was able to negotiate a parole, in which she would still be able to keep in contact with Jhon, thus taking up residence in his dog collar.

I should also mention that in addition to being on parole, she's still deeply in love with her ex-husband, even though their marriage was more like a friends w/o the benefits of them being husband and wife.

So this is where we stand with Adeola: a woman who acknowledges her sexuality, but because she has chosen to play by the rules she truly abhors and has done so with grace, has been allowed a greater degree of freedom within that society that probably would not be allowed to someone else in a similar situation. A woman who still cares deeply for her ex-husband, but is also willing to tentatively and discreetly accept feelers of all kinds from the women that she is involved with within this rescue mission.

Exit ramp #6: So far we have covered the letter "B" and the letter "L". Now it's time to cover the letter "G".

Doing the bossa nova back to the highway.

Tune in next Monday some time in the early a.m. for the 6th and final post in this nifty little series. Here's to you having a Blue Plate Special Monday, a Taco Tuesday, followed by a Wayback Burger Wednesday, Tortellini Thursday and a Fried Plantain Friday.*  

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*note: local radio station in the 80's had a program called "Blue Plate Special", not sure what kind of music was played; we all know Taco Tuesday; Wayback Burger is a regional chain located mostly in New England and the East Coast; I like different kinds of pasta; and my daughter turned me onto plantain chips.

{c} 2024 by G.B. Miller. All Rights Reserved