FEVER

You had ignored me.
After all that I had told you about gnawing
Slugs and scorpions and planarian worms
Off the cave floor.
And now you had fever. You had a real ailment.
You had eaten a baddie.
You lay helpless and a little bit lazy
With the fever. You squeaked for Nubia,
But no-one came.
I bustled about and fetched some Benghazi bananas
Was this to be your Nubian dessert?
And lowered them,
One by one, into your piggy maw.
I wiped your tear-ruined snout
And wondered if
You might be,
Might just be,
Taking me for a ride.
Your piggy-eyes were inscrutable.
You did not let me know.
You said nothing,
Which was what I expected
Of you.

Meanwhile,
The good saint fetched loads of bananas.
The fat pigling lay on its back and scoffed the lot.