Two Husbands'... Part 2, Chapter 29

 

By Their Own Numbers Possessed

Witchdoctor, 2 Wives watching

ONLOOKER

It occurs to me that

the building the Witchdoctor built

is a square, stretched-out heavy thing;

impenetrable probably, almost -

except by the sharp-ended bramble twigs

    that he fashioned into

    puncturing numbers

to go inside of the building.

And, before inching them in softly,

he has super-consciously made those numbers

(to be able to communicate a great number of things)

    enchanted -

not resplendent, not glorified

but very receptive. Receptionairy.

NARRATOR making notes,

WORDS FOR THE WITCHDOCTOR’S ACTIVITIES

WITH THE NUMBERS IN THE BRINE

Wet, briny numbers inside the building.

His commands - their listening.

Signals, within the mud, going over

oceanaries, continents and waves

all the way to the east coast of North America.

These connections

are going to bring the Husbands

out of their offices.

WORDS FOR THE WITCHDOCTOR’S METHODS

FOR POWERING AND MANIFESTING

LIFE-CHANGES IN NUMBERS

He is affecting so-called inanimate objects,

which are always going to be

spinning inside of themselves anyway, we think.

In a way,

he reaches in

through his tongue

like an ant-eater

to stir and hook up with those

inner components inside of

inanimatory (inanimate) matter.

He will, like a honey stick,

attach, whip up and stir around

and draw out and wrap them

around his tongue (or on to your little finger!).

And thus, he will have already smeared it on

and all over; and gotten it ready

to present to the gods.

He is ready to propose and send

such a sweet message to the gods that they will enjoy

licking or dragging it along over the waves’ brines

spraying above the deep,

until it gets inside the city walls; and high up above,

through the Husbands’ windows, goes in

to enwrap its sullen (but fertile and procreative)

enchantments upon their jotted pages -

and all over, up on the walls of their graph.

And then it shall come down

    over them.

And they’ll be dragged out of there,

    like fish in its netting.

Thrown out - but safely -

    from the windows;

ready to ride upon the larger numbers

blown up and manifested moving

by the Witchdoctor’s incantating spells

from his far jungle habitat.

The Two Wives watch!

(The Witchdoctor sees the Two Wives in their hiding place)

WITCHDOCTOR, explaining to the Two Wives,

I am trying to get your two husbands to come here.

I’m trying to provide means, locomotion;

    a strong enduring vehicle

    for them to travel upon,

without them thinking or planning about it;

because, by this development,

they’ll have to be taken by surprise

    and be carried away

    almost against their will,

by being just barely persuaded,

    (or knocked up against)

by my jungle-charmed phantoms;

and by their own numbers, possessed!

But, suddenly, inquisitive Ladies,

you’ve interrupted the crucial scheduling

of these proceedings. Now... I must assume

that the Two Husbands were just barely getting going

out the window on the numbers when...

TWO WIVES

We shouted out and showed ourselves here!

Oh, no! What have we done wrong?

WITCHDOCTOR continuing calmly,

... When your husbands must have turned back,

astoundedly, only a few feet, to the edge

of the roof...

TWO WIVES

Oh, no!

WITCHDOCTOR

...and landed stably there,

each on his own two feet.

Witchdoctor and the two businessmen

TWO WIVES, relieved

Sigh...

WITCHDOCTOR

And the great numbers gone!

disappeared, distilled, evaporated

and ménaged - remunerated all out -

    like no trace of clouds

    or birds in the sky!

So, you Two Wives will have to go get

the Husbands yourselves.

You’ll have to go away from the jungle

back to your far away city to be with them.

(Now, the Two Wives now have to think of a way to transport themselves back to the city - with the Witchdoctor’s help)

NARRATOR

It looks like the Two Husbands appear on top of the building.

Maybe the Witchdoctor sees them, maybe he doesn’t?

They are disoriented, let loose,

from their levitating number bulbs floating up.

They’ve just made it to the roof’s edge

and are not going anywhere, anymore.

Is this really true?

ONLOOKER

The Witchdoctor can’t really tell if his animating formulas

are working now; because he has been interrupted by the Two Wives,

He assumes that the Husbands’ traveling numbers have been

permanently delayed. What do you think?

NARRATOR

I don’t agree! I think it’s the opposite.

(End of Chapter 29)