calypso

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i stand here

beguiled of your estranged tempo

that beats in tune to a chainsaw massacre

fervid and winded—

now the dance has begun.

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you drag me forth

prophet for a night

felicitous be the warm hues

smeared across my cheeks

and blessed be

the sweat beading down my back

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flames tongue licks lovemarks up my thighs

as i spin round your favor

the ritual must be performed barefoot, i am told

only a thin shift hides a curved silhouette

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'dance with me,' you said

an imioned glimmer behind your dark eyes

worship the gods as they were meant to be

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i always viewed you as a god.

chiseled from quartz

andante divinity melting mortal souls

you are the deity of this island

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and i fell to my knees with ease

worship falling from my corporeal lips

the dance had grown crazed

skin on skin with the drums beating heavier

a flame caught hold of my hair,

setting me alight

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how could i not believe in you

when you held me

through it all

even as the flames encomed us

my dress reduced to ashes

your arms traveled to my thighs where

once pink hickies had blackened to char

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naivety failed to note your immortality

i never questioned what happens

to the girls before

does he kiss every maiden, the way

he does me?

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eventually, the burning dawn gave way

to smoke and embers

you stood alone; unharmed.

and another year’s harvest is promised

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only one of us was ever meant to survive

calypso’s fire.

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