Young ladies wore gowns and flowers in bloom
Young gentlemen preened and wandered the room
Anxiously waiting for her to arrive
With the crowd we thought we’d never be missed
Two fools engaging in a lovers’ tryst
Risking the wrath of the Queen of the Hive
One suitor above all she wished to claim
Blessed with fortune and charm and ancient name
For his hand and his heart did she connive
But he was immune to all of her charms
And sought his refuge in my loving arms
The poor cousin of the Queen of the Hive
Under the apple tree we met in hope
Determining there that we would elope
This did her sudden appearance deprive
Caught in the garden on that fateful eve
By she who we had hoped most to deceive
We stood shamed before the Queen of the Hive
Then she produced under teasing banter
Crystal wineglasses with matched decanter
Refreshment to make our spirits revive
Handing us glasses carved with bloom and bee
She bade us both drink and complying we
Fell to the spell of the Queen of the Hive
She was determined to punish and shame
For him to die and to me go the blame
Against her dark magic we could not strive
With a smile of ice she bade him stand still
Then turned to me and commanded I kill
With grief we obeyed the Queen of the Hive
He stood like a statue and did not flinch
As I smashed my wineglass against the bench
From our struggles a thrill did she derive
As I embedded a shard in his chest
And a crimson bloom appeared on his breast
In mock alarm cried the Queen of the Hive
As her crocodile tears began to roll
I saw that my glass on the ground was whole
For a breath I thought he might be alive
A drugged wine’s visions and not a spell cast
Then I saw his corpse as they seized me fast
So thus was revenged the Queen of the Hive
One thought has sustained me through all my trials
Through her accusations and secret smiles
When it was decreed I should not survive
She destroyed our lives but never our love
I know we will join in heaven above
While here alone dwells the Queen of the Hive
Email exchange between Dr. Kate Greenaway, Lead Researcher SCP-3876 and Archivist Erina Carson, January 20, 2017:
Dr. Greenaway,
The attached poem, written on the back of an envelope, was attached in SCP-3876-2 along with a series of newspaper clippings detailing the arrest, trial, and conviction of one Maria Duchamp. On succeeding pages were a sketch of a decanter with a set of wineglasses and a description of certain mind-affecting properties: when an individual pours an alcoholic beverage from the decanter into one of the wineglasses, other individuals who consume the beverage from one of those glasses will obey any spoken command of the first individual.
We did some investigating in the database, and found the following:
Anomalous Item: Crystal decanter with four matching wineglasses
Location: Site-81 Anomalous Item/Safe Object Long Term Storage
Description: Ornate crystal decanter and wineglasses carved with an intaglio of a bee on a flower. Glasses and decanter will spontaneously reassemble/reform upon damage.In light of the information in 3876-2, further testing of this item might be in order.
Erina Carson, Site-81 Archives
Agreed. I’ll contact the Director and see if we can get that item back to the Classification Department.
-Dr. Kate Greenaway