Between Two Kings
65 pages • 2-hour read
Lindsay StraubeBetween Two Kings
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Symbols & Motifs
The Letter Opener (symbol)
As Tem and Leo struggle with their desire for one another, they have a charged sexual encounter in which they decide not to directly touch one another. They hope that avoiding skin contact will temper their desire and it also allows Tem to avoid activating the curse of the blood bond. During this encounter, Leo uses a letter opener to cut Tem’s clothing from her body and then uses the blunt handle as a phallic substitute to penetrate and pleasure her. The letter opener symbolizes Leo’s unquenchable desire for Tem (despite each of them being in a relationship with someone else). The device alludes to how he has been writing letters to work through his seemingly unrequited emotions for her. While the written documents capture Leo’s internal state, the materiality of the letter opening reveals that his love and longing have a physical component that is also going unsatisfied. Both letters and letter openers would be utilized in situations where individuals are physically separated (and thus communicate in writing, rather than through speech). Thus, the letter opener symbolizes how Leo continues to long for a sense of connection to Tem, even when they cannot physically be together.
The use of a material object as a phallic substitute aligns the letter opener with the magical claw that Caspen sometimes uses to pleasure Tem without directly touching her. Unlike the magic claw (which can pulse and is controlled by Caspen’s mind), the letter opener is an unremarkable, everyday object. Nonetheless, it reveals that Leo is desperate for a sense of connection to Tem and will take whatever he can get. It also alludes to the gold phallus that Rowe fashions and wears: In Rowe’s case, he lusts for power rather than another person, but he still uses a surrogate object to display that lust. In all of these cases, men’s longing is shown to be so unquenchable that they will rely on substitutes in order to maintain pursuit of their goals.
Since the letter opener is sharp, it also represents the dangerous and painful nature of Leo’s longing. As he brings Tem to climax, he inadvertently cuts himself with the sharp end he is clutching. This damage reveals the consequences of his lust for Tem, and how painful it is for him to watch her climax without being able to physically touch her. The letter opener reveals how Leo tries to find creative ways to manage his emotional and physical longing for Tem but causes himself pain as a result.
The Wedding Ring (symbol)
At the start of the novel, Tem still wears the simple silver ring that she received from Leo when they married. She wears it continuously so that when they remarry at the conclusion, “Leo gave her no ring; she had never stopped wearing the one he’d given her the first time” (476). The ring symbolizes Tem’s unwavering love for Leo and how it endures in spite of her immersion in basilisk culture. At the beginning of the novel, when Tem and Leo’s marriage is annulled, she asks if he wants the ring back and he declines. Leo’s willingness to have Tem keep the ring reveals his ongoing emotional bond with her. Tem wears the ring faithfully despite her relationship with Caspen and her role as basilisk queen, which shows that she never entirely gives up on her dream of a relationship with Leo, despite the many challenges that make this hope futile.
The ring belonged to Leo’s mother, and it is simple and unadorned (somewhat surprising for a gift to a royal bride, and in direct contrast with Evelyn’s flashy taste). The ring’s modest aesthetic and status as a family heirloom reveals that it is an authentic manifestation of Leo’s genuine love. Thus, Tem’s treasuring of the ring reveals how much she values the sincere bond the two of them have constructed. The ring is made from silver, which further cements how it contrasts with basilisk culture. Basilisk blood can be transmuted into gold and Tem wears a golden pendant that Caspen gave her as a symbol of their betrothal and blood bond. Thus the silver ring emblematizes a contrasting bond with a human man (the silver also alludes to Leo’s icy blonde hair). By continuously wearing it even while pledging herself to another, the ring symbolizes Tem’s bond with Leo and foreshadows how they will eventually reunite.
The Ouroboros (symbol)
As one of the rituals that comprise basilisk mating season, Tem participates in a ritual known as the ouroboros. In this ritual, basilisks (in human form) form a circle and simultaneously receive and perform oral sex (engaging with two different partners at the same time). The sexual ritual depicted in the novel is named after an ancient symbol which depicts a serpent or dragon eating its own tail (forming a circular shape as a result). The ouroboros ritual symbolizes unity and flexibility, with Tem’s decision to participate in this ritual symbolizing her growing embrace of basilisk culture.
Tem is initially hesitant about whether to participate, because engaging in the ritual will require her to have sexual contact with someone other than Caspen, and for her to tolerate Caspen having sexual contact with another basilisk. She ends up choosing Adelaide to perform oral sex on her, and a “tall blond basilisk” (114) who reminds her of Leo as Caspen’s partner. The experience with Adelaide during the ouroboros is Tem’s first sexual experience with another woman, symbolizing her dawning awareness that the gender of her partner is less important than their emotional bond. Tem’s choice of a man who reminds her of Leo symbolizes her fluid desire and longing for unity between her two loves: As the ritual proceeds, she realizes she is extremely aroused by the knowledge that Caspen is performing oral sex on another man. In the traditional ouroboros symbol, a single snake takes part of itself into its own mouth, but in the ouroboros ritual, male and female basilisks become interchangeable, symbolizing how they are all united.
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