Pinocchio Goes Back to His Roots Literally Yet Not; Meet 'The Secretaries of Juliet'/A Couple of Letters Written In 1957
*Shocker*- up until now, *PINOCCHIO* had never been to Italy! He'd always lived in America ever since his birth despite his biological parents being from there. And now, here he was; he just KNEW that Hector was already writing a song about it, or planning to, and that the title and chorus would have the word 'roots' in it...
Not that *he MINDED*- whatever the tall lanky garnet-eyed Mexican man wrote, it would be beautiful and amazing as always like with 'Remember Me', 'Poco Loco', 'The World Es Mi Familia', 'Chamaco', 'Everyone Knows Juanita', 'What a self-important jerk!!', 'Roses By the Sea', and others.
It was funny... He got on with his adopted older sister's boyfriend-then-fiance Victor just fine, but they didn't quite *HIT IT OFF-hit it off* despite his absolute *ADORATION* of Italian cuisine. With aforementioned cousin's fiance's *own cousin*, however- they just CLICKED! Maybe it was due to the fact that Hector himself was two years-married to one of Pinocchio's best friends Miguel Sanchez- or maybe it was just because Hector was such a warm, loving, caring, funny, and thoughtful person that he got along with just about everyone he met (if he didn't accidentally tick them off and then stick himself in their bad-or-annoying books), same as 'Nocchi'...
And it was likely due to being Hector's 'amigo' and Italian himself that he didn't become disinterested and bored over time with the cuisinary private tour with each and every one of Victor's suppliers as Sophie was- even though she tried her very best not to show it out of politeness and not wanting to hurt Victor's feelings as they taste-tested olive oil on slices of bread, sampled wine from the oldest vineyard for miles around, explored a cheese shop (Hector was again inspired by Victor's saying enthusiastically "I wish I was a little mouse living in your cheese cave!", which had made Pinocchio laugh), etc., etc., etc.
Both he and Hector knew that Sophie was getting impatient and antsy- that she wanted to get tickets to the opera before they sold out; to see the Castelvecchio, Lake Garda, and Juliet's House amongst other things. Funny how the man who was supposed to love her didn't really- It made Hector want to take a leaf out of his cobbler sister Imelda's book and smack a shoe across his face- like when they were informed that they were going *120 kilometers* to see tarufo truffles being dug. All fine and dandy, but still-!
(Pinocchio could tell that an exasperated Hector was already mentally writing another ditty; just please don't play it in front of your cousin, 'per favore'!)
It was soon decided genially enough that the Riveras would go see the 'truffle place' and that Sophie and 'Nocchi would go do their own thing and sight-see. Victor of course declared it a 'win-win' (to which Hector fondly rolled his eyes- and yes, he'd long ago written a tune about that expression his cousin was so fond of using).
The first place that they decided to go was Juliet's House, since 'Romeo and Juliet' was one of Sophie's favorite Shakespearean plays. It seemed to be a pretty popular spot- there was even an Italian woman currently reciting Juliet's part of 'The Balcony Scene' in her native language! All seemed nice and happy-
Then they noticed some men/boys and women/girls *CRYING* either silently or aloud as they wrote letters that they then stuck into one side of the house and left there. Some were in French, some were in Spanish, German, Norse, or otherwise if not English or Italian. Pinocchio and Sophie caught snippets of 'letter conversations' here and there, and it broke their hearts.
"'My dear Juliet...'"
"'Dear Juliet- the man I love is NOT *my HUSBAND*...!'"
"'Dear Juliet- like you, my father does not approve of the one I love, and wishes for me to marry someone else to the point of threatening to disown me if I do not do this. But in my case, it is because we are both males! But I love him, and he loves me- it seems that our only support is my godfather, who has convienced us to elope sans appearance of death (no offense, Signorina)...'"
"'Dear Juliet- my family loves and supports me still after coming out and introducing my beloved girlfriend to them ...but my best friend who is like a sister to me and has been since we were very young does not. Please tell me what I should do; my heart is broken...!'"
What puzzled and surprised them more was when a 5'4 dark-haired young man wearing semi-round blue-framed glasses over his almond-shaped brilliant green eyes, a black-and-yellow T-shirt with Mr. Badger from Kenneth Graham's 'The Wind in the Willows' on the front of it, emerald-green jeans, and blue bronze-trimmed-and-laced trainers came around a little after the weeping letter-writers were gone and collected each and every one in a basket on his arm. Curious, they followed after him into a small building behind Juliet's House where he brought the basket to a large table at which three other males sat conversing either in Italian, English, French, or Norse (which Pinocchio recognized since it was a favorite language of his). They looked over the letters, clucking, tisking, sighing, and murmuring in sympathy as verdant(ish) eyes glistened with the same emotion.
Sophie and 'Nocchi nervously knocked on the doorframe, and the men looked up.
"Are you the translator from the employment office?" queried the first dark-haired male in a semi-crisp British accent. "I mean, we have been waiting *for TWO WEEKS*! What took you so long??"
Ladies first-
"No- no! I mean... I'm sorry- my name is 'Sophie'. This- This is my younger brother 'Nocchi."
"H-Hello. We- We just followed you, 'signore', and we saw that you put the letters into a basket, and we just wondered why..."
"'Why'?" The messy-haired young man smiled warmly and motioned the siblings forward. "Come- we'll show you."
They came forward, the young man's three companions greeting them just as warmly- one of them with longish messy *dark auburn* hair and rounded eyes more forest than emerald plus freckles like nobody's business same as Pinocchio enthused in a slightly adoniel voice that was still pleasant to the ear, "*What a day* to go down in history- *PINOCCHIO* comes to ITALY with his (non)Blue-Haired Sister!"
He was given a Look for that, but it was a fondly exasperated one. (The joker of the group?? -No, not really; he just tended to quip, quote, and snark.)
"They come from all over the world every day..."
"But- *takin' their letters*?? Isn't that, like- takin' pennies from a wishin' well?"
"Maybe ...but how else can we give them answers, young Pinocchio?"
"...*Oh my God*! So-,"
%"You write them all back!"%
"'Oui'- that we do," nodded another black-haired and green-eyed male with a soft smile, but with his straighter locks down to just below his shoulders and his gemstone eyes more sea-green than emerald, jade, or forest wearing a casual yet dapper suit.
"You're *ALL* 'Juliet'?"
"Ah... *her SECRETARIES*, more like," chuckled the one with reddish-brown hair wearing brown, dark green, and red who had a lamed leg. "And our husbands or boyfriends help us out too, occasionally."
Neither one of them blinked an eye at this- mainly because 'Nocchi was gay himself. If anything, it made sense since Juliet's part had been played by a young man or teen boy back in the days when women and girls were not allowed onstage for one reason or another- *even with ballet*!
"How- How do you divide things up?"
The bespectacled young man nodded over at the eldest one of the small group with sea-green eyes, full lips, and alabaster skin. "Louis here is half-vampire (don't worry- when 'thirst' arises, he seeks out only *the SCUMBAGS* of the world), and he has been married for thirty-two years to the same man- Daniel Molloy. He handles spouse problems."
"Take it from someone who knows- husbands are like wine. They take a *LONG time* to age, and some never do!"
"Hiccup is a nurse, same as his Mate Jacob also known as 'Toothless'. He deals with illness and loss- and not just of spouses or 'amados'. Kurt? He writes whatever he likes, same as his not-quite-yet-fiance Adam. He's- incorrigible, like his namesake."
"Oh, *COME ON*, Harry!" 'Kurt', a tall slender porcelain-skinned and chestnut-haired young man with elven features and rare 'glaz' eyes a blend between pale/bright blue, green, and gray clad in what 'Nocchi and Sophie vaguely recognized as 'Vogue' attire playfully groaned. "Hiccup's bad enough when he *actually quotes*, and *with VOICES*...!"
Harry snickered- painfully, it reminded Pinocchio of how Romeo AKA 'Lampwick' had used to tease him like that for something.
"And- And you, Mr. Harry?"
Now Louis's smile was touched with sadness. "Harry here plus Remus answer the ones you can hardly read, they're so shakily-written, tear-stained, or both."
"Yeah," Hiccup agreed quietly with a small shake of his head. "The lovers' quarrels, the family fights due to disapproval one way or the other, the break-ups- the *REALLY tangled* hearts..."
Harry shrugged with glistening eyes, "*Someone* has to do it. Who better than 'the Boy Who Lived', if not Porcelain, the Dragon Whisperer, or Snow White of the Vampire World in certain cases?"
Pinocchio looked down at a tear-splattered note with a broken heart drawn on it, and nodded silently in agreement in semi-tandem with Sophie.
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"*Figures*- it. Just. *FIGURES*! One way or another, he smells food -*ITALIAN food*, at that!!-, and even when the subject is *Juliet Capulet*, he hardly pays attention to what his FIANCEE is saying, he's too busy savoring the deliciousness! *Ugh*; how can we be actually related, I will *NEVER* know...! I mean, I'm sure it's good and all, but- *YEESH*!!
"Well, *I* am paying absolute attention, and I am asking- how was Verona??"
"Pretty great. We not only saw Juliet's House, but we met the 'secretaries of Juliet'!"
"-*Say WHAT*??"
"There are these guys who call themselves 'secretaries to Juliet'- they write letters in reply to heartbroken people all over the world and leave them on the wall of Juliet's courtyard, and then these secretaries come with this basket and retrieve the letters every day. And they write them back as 'Juliet' to all the letters that have return addresses on them. I mean, this is *their JOB*- their *PASSION*! They will literally work this way *all day*, *EVERY day*, when not at their other jobs; and their loved ones help out, too!
"They and other secretaries men and women (though mostly women) have been doin' this *for YEARS*! I mean- it's incredible..."
"-'Ay, caramba'. Why am I already feeling *ANOTHER song* itching to be written??! I know, I know- it's just that inspiring and wonderful, what these 'hombres' do."
"I'm sure that they'd *LOVE it*, Hector; Mr. Kurt, especially, since he and Mr. Adam are lovers of musical theater and actors themselves. I think that they'd be very pleased and flattered...
"How was the truffle hike?"
"Eh- not so bad. Fresh air, lots of trees, and all that; plus the tarufos, which WERE *incredible*, I will say! -Not song-inspiring, though; not like yours' and Sophie's venture. Ah, well- can't win 'em all, 'si'?"
"'Si'..."
"HEY! *Hey, hey, hey*, you guys! Hector- 'Nocchi, you *GOTTA try this*! *Mmm*... Omigod; this is *INCREDIBLE*! This is GREAT! Try this, try this-!"
"Hmm... 'Oye', that *IS good*! Who made this?"
"Hiccup, this time."
"'This time'??"
"They all plus their 'amados' love to cook- if they weren't Juliet's Secretaries, they'd be openin' up a restaurant and puttin' Victor out of business *like THAT*, if not just givin' him some friendly rivalry due to also selling French, Norse, and German cuisine alongside Italian...!"
"Heh- I'll take your word for it, 'muneco'."
"Your Victor is *VERY passionate*, Mademoiselle Sophie. Reminds me of Lestat yet not ...no red flags, though."
"Yes, yes, I know. -But he seems to think that he's actually Italian since we got here."
"And although imitation is, of course, the highest form of flattery- let us just say that his imitations *are NOT* very good, for all that he is my cousin. We may be as passionate and romantic as many people say Italians are, 'si'- but we are of *MEXICAN blood*. Hispanic! *Get it RIGHT*, 'per favor, primo', and do not forget your own actual roots...!"
"How long have your sister and Victor been engaged??"
"Um... almost a year. They dated for five."
"*Wow*. -Pardon me for asking, but why isn't she wearing an engagement ring??"
"Oh! Well, um... See- that's- that's Sophie, Mr. Remus; she insisted. I mean, he was *AWFUL busy*- y' know, with the whole restaurant and everything, and- I guess it felt unnecessary to her."
"Still- I think that every person should have a ring before the wedding. Not as a way of possession, but as a way of saying 'I'm marrying the person whom I love, whom asked me to stay by his-or-her side forever and always'."
"...Gee! If either Hector or Miguel had *heard THAT*, they'd be inspired t' write another song!"
"Well, they wholeheartedly have my permission to do so, if they wish. I'm rather a romantic, myself..."
"No boyfriend, 'amante', or fiance in *YOUR life* right now, 'Nocchi?"
"N-No. I'm- I'm not really what most other 'real boys' would consider 'ragazzo material', Mr. Toothless. I've- I've never really dated before..."
"Well, *why THE HECK* NOT, I'd like to know??! You're sweet, and not in a cloying way- you're kind, you're funny, you're smart, you're beautiful in *YOUR OWN way*-!"
"...People want perfect handsome porcelain dolls- not weird quirky puppet-boys. -But, one day, I'd really like t' *HOPE* that..."
"You *WILL find someone* like that some day, 'nostre doux ami'; after all, they said the same of Kurt, Harry, Hiccup, and (to a point) myself- and look at us now! Married or otherwise happily and cozily settled with the ones who love us- every single weird and quirky little trait inside and out..."
"'Grazie', Mr. Louis."
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Pinocchio did his best to put the heavy conversation from earlier out of his mind while he and Sophie helped Harry collect Juliet's letters from the courtyard wall. -And any vestiges of such flew out the window the moment that they uncovered a couple of letters from *the 1950's* in a hole covered by a semi-loose rock. One was written by a young woman- and the other by a young man.
'I didn't go to him, Juliet. I didn't go to Buzz. His eyes -those beautiful blue eyes- were so full of *trust*-! I promised him that I'd meet him to run away together, because Jessie's and my uncle doesn't approve due to his being a "space-man" instead of another country boy/cowboy- like how Jessie ended up with Bo, who's a shepherdess. But instead, *I left him waiting for me*- waiting and wondering where I was.
I'm still in Verona now with my childhood friend and pen-pal Claire Smith- she returns to England in the morning, and I leave for Nashville once more ...and we're both so afraid and guilt-ridden. *PLEASE, Miss Juliet ma'am*- tell us what we should do! Our hearts are *BREAKING*, and we have no one else to turn to save for each other, and we don't see one another that often.
Love,
Woody Pride'
"*Oh, MERLIN*... And, they've both been there *for all of these years*??"
"Since 1957. Mr. Harry, -we *HAVE to* write back! 'Per favore'..."
"-Then answer them, mates."
"Written in *1957*???! *MAMMA MIA*!! Miguel is *going to FLIP* when he hears about that; and wiping away tears...! Do you think that they ever found each other again- either Claire and Lorenzo, or Buzz and Woody, 'Nocchi?"
"That- That'd be awful nice, wouldn't it? We- We know that it might not even get there, or to its' original owner- but it *felt so GOOD* to write; to let them know that they were heard and semi-understood... -You could write back to some letters, too. I- I *KNOW that none of 'em* will mind...!"
"Think they wouldn't mind a temporary Hispanic branch added to Juliet's Secretaries while cousin dearest is away at his super-exclusive wine auction in Livorno?"
"You're just as nice and thoughtful a person as they are- and they didn't at all mind when *Sophie 'n I*, who're born 'Americini', did so."
"Sure- sure; yeah, okay! If it's alright with them! *Win-win*, as Victor says...! Besides- not only is he not able to get another ticket or two, but wine-auctions? Eh- not really my thing anymore than yours' or Sophie's."