Pahn's Consort

…a woman/nymph—

she seems about thirty

is walking with Pahn

wearing light gray/powder blue

and her face

a pale translucence

with a fuzzy bloom

She steps from the sidewalk                                                    

in this British city                                                      

of recent blocks                                     

                    sharp-edged and clean                                 

and onto a stoop                                       

trying the door                                                 

finding it unlocked she               

walks in impish            

and Pahn follows

through a hall and up a stair

into a series of rooms

of shining cleanliness

and unused newness

and couches

a wealth

of superfluity

and finding a bed

as the fabrics evolve

from dryness

to a sense of humidity

chrome      

and glass

and a bed is evoked beside her

           

as she says they should make love

her clothes loosening

and her mouth

moves closer

and absorbs his attention

her lips in an O

but before his hands

can be certain of the buttons

no more than un-tucked

and ransacked

blouse and shirt

are voices heard

from a slamming door

and a rich couple

bickering

and Pahn and his consort       

run back the way they came                         

barely having time to wish                                         

that they could have                                        

straightened the bed…             

…they walk into a bar and                                      

through a room for eating                     

and sit with the stares                                      

 and the murmuring                   

of their adventure

and his wife                 

and her husband           

and Pahn confides                                               

to find he is not jealous             

and she is uneasy             

but Pahn jokes             

and walks out telling her

that they should be open

about their affair…

How our philosophies

 evolve to justify

our personalities

…Pahn and his consort

have found a room

and she is younger now

        and more naked

and she pulls him eagerly

     and his love turns to desire

and he turns her over

            and she sits out to face him

and lies beneath him

     and he turns her over again

and she says to an apparition

of an older woman

who knows Pahn better

“why is he doing this”

and the woman

out of view

says

as if

annoyed?

consoling?

or just matter-of-fact?

“because he likes to”

and Pahn’s consort

is satisfied if baffled

and turns her back to him

and he feels

himself finding moisture

which is cool

and the narrow

and she gasps

and cries out briefly

as he tries to find his comfort…