Dhalgren

“Thanks, babes. But I just finished lunch.”

“We were a lot cleaner there,” Kid said, “maybe because there were a few more girls around.”

“Male chauvinist pig,” Lanya said dryly. “Import a lot of slave labor to wash the dishes and—”

“I’m not a male chauvinist pig,” Kid said. “I’m a commie faggot pervert.”

“There’s nothing to stop you from being both.”

“Everybody cleaned. Just like here. We made people take their shoes off when they came in the door. New York slush. It’s just nice with more girls.”

“You’re preaching. That all may be, but it’s not here. I can just manage to resist inviting you to come live with me and be my loves.”

“I guess with the place you got, you wouldn’t want to come live here,” De

Raven suddenly stuck his bushy top-knot over the edges. “Hey, Lady, if they don’t want to come live with you, I’d be glad to. I’m clean, I’m friendly. I do a lot of the cooking around here, too; I’m a pretty good lay—”

“Get the fuck out of here, cocksucker!” Kid said loudly, leaning forward.

“Sure.” The top-knot disappeared. “Thought I’d make the offer.”

“And don’t let anybody else up here. We’re busy, huh?”

“Okay,” from below. Bolts and nuts rattled.

“Oh, there’re other reasons I don’t move you in.”

“I guess Madame Brown wouldn’t like it,” De

“She might not,” Lanya said. “But I wasn’t thinking of that. I just feel I need a place to retreat. Where I can go lick my wounds; when I get wounded.”

“Cool,” Kid said.

“Are you afraid of us?” De

“Yes.” She took his hand and put it back. “But you keep things interesting. I don’t know why I should be…oh, nonsense! I can think of four hundred reasons why I should be—or reasons why other people would say I should be. My own? I suppose I’m doing it to find out what they are. Pretty defeatist, huh? Okay, I’m just doing it to find out.”

“I guess,” De

“…he up there?” someone said.

“He’s busy. You can’t go up there.”

“I only want to talk with him a minute!”

“I said he’s busy, man. You can’t—”

“Look, lover, I can see the tops of their heads from here so he can’t be doing anything that complicated.”

Kid went over to the loft edge. “Bu

“Now, you see—” Bu

“Yeah, he’s been around.”

“Hi, Bu

“Ah-ah-ah!” Bu

“We probably were,” Lanya said. “But come on.”

Bu

“Here.” De

“Oh, watch it, oh watch it, watch it now, I…Oh!” Bu

“He’s around,” Kid said. “But I don’t know if he’s here just now. You want to take him back with you? That’s fine with me.”

Bu

“Naw,” Kid said. “But I had to make loud noises at someone trying to give him a rough time.”

“You did?” Bu

“Yeah,” Kid said. “Probably. I was sitting in the John at Teddy’s when I wrote it. You were outside dancing.”

“Ahhhh!” Bu

“Far,” De

Lanya said: “If Bu

“Yeah,” Kid said. “You want to come? Most of the guys in the nest are going up. So Pepper’ll probably be along.”

“Oh, I couldn’t!” Bu

“Why not?”

“Principles.”

“How do you mean?”

“Well.” The space between Bu

“He’s Calkins’ guest. I guess he will.”

“That’s why.”

De