King and Queen

Escapril prompt: without your name, who are you?

The King argued to his sweet Queen,
“There’s nothing in a name,
A rose, if you called it anything else,
Would still smell just the same.”

The Queen, doubtful, pointed to her knight:
“Would not this man, once a farmer,
Without the title of a knight,
Be just a man in armor?”

The knight said, “Queen, I’m just a man,
But I’ve never lost a fight.”
The King jumped up out of his throne,
And said, “Aha, I’m right!”

The Queen said, “Duke, settle this for us,
Is there something that I’ve missed?
Is a name just a silly label,
Or does it define why you exist?”

The Duke said, “Sorry ma’am, I’m with... umm...”
But he forgot the word for “king”,
And in the instant that he did,
The King ceased to be a thing!