Courtesan and the Man

Years ago, just before the French Revolution in Paris, there was a Courtesan. a most
beautiful courtesan as courtesans must be. But she was not to everyones taste !so to
s"ea#$. %er s#in was dar# and tan li#e mil#y hot chocolate and this scared some men.
!go into this more$
Fortunately for her, it thrilled others and those that chose to "arta#e of her flavours were
never disa""ointed. &he would, without fail and with minimal fuss, ta#e them to #iss the
stars.
'he Courtesan was naturally noble. &ome say she was descended from (frican )arriors.
&ome say, (frican Royalty. 'here was a regality to her stride, a fine line in her "rofile and
a natural air of entitlement in her manner. 'hose that didn*t resonate with her attractions
considered her just overly haughty.
'he courtesan lived for many years in fine lu+ury. &he was a #e"t woman, yes but she
was #e"t in style. &he had her own a"artments, one for living in and one in which she
received her guests. she was handsomely "aid for her s#ilful services and she had a fine
eye for ,uality. (s a result she never wasted her "ennies on shallow fads but only
"urchased clothing, furniture and jewels of high worth.
Because of her fine sensibilities, she was a valued "arty guest and was received in the
u""er echelons of society. -t was even rumoured that she*d serviced the .ing//. -t was
also rumoured that hed shown her everything she #new, though the reverse was much
more li#ely.
0ife went along as it did. Parties. 1ancing. 1aring 'rysts, you #now. 2ntil the
Revolution. -n these dar# and dangerous times it a""eared that her re"utation would do
nothing to save her and would in fact be her downfall.
3ne morning, early in the morning, she was ri""ed from slee" by a blood curdling
scream and a crashing and s"lintering of wood. 'hrough the door of her inner boudoir,
four men e+"loded. 'hey dragged her by the heels from her bed, threw her red sil# night
dress at her and told her to crawl to he street.
&he #new this was it, the end of life as she had #nown it. &he felt in her bones the
dee"est echoing that abandonment could sound. (ll her fine friends, she could see, one
by one, disowning her. 4udas, denying her. %er fancy clothes and influential
connections were as useful as wet matchstic#s.
(ll she had was her self. (nd if that was the sum total of her dowry, she would dis"lay it
in all its glory as she made her way to meet her final husband, 1eath.
&o instead of covering her cocoa hid and crawling as ordered, she strode forth, full of
defiance, clutching the sil# night dress to her chest li#e a crimson waterfall and she
wal#ed out of her elegant a"artment, head high, eyes straight ahead. distracted, not a
whit, by her whis"ering neighbours. 'he only sign of fear was a slight shimmer that ran
through the sil# of the night dress as it reverberated the "ounding of her heart.
)hen she reached the street, a cheer went u". 5ot a chorus of welcomes but ,uite the
o""osite. 'he sound the crowd ma#es when the rabid lioness has been bro#en.
But she was not tamed. Far from it. 'he louder the jeers, the higher she held her head.
&he lic#ed her li"s enticingly, maddeningly, and smiled at the crowd, challenging them to
catch her eye. 'hey soon loo#ed away ashamed by the e+citement they felt as they
"erused her earthy wares. %er high brown buttoc#s, glistening in the sun. %er shoulders
lean and tight and her breasts, "aler than the rest of her colouring, round and smooth li#e
sea shells.
'he Courtesan #new that des"ite all a""earances she had not lost. For, although she was
on her way to dance with death, she would choose the ste"s.
(t this "oint one might "ose the ,uestion 6)hy did the revolutionaries feel it a""ro"riate
that77 this fine woman loose her head for their cause8*. -t was #nown, des"ite the
rumours that she had come from lowly beginnings. ( servant in a minor Mar,uis
#itchen, assistant to the ba#er, until an incident involving the ba#ers "rivate 9loaf9 and
teeth that bit down when they were only meant to tic#le. 'hen a stint at Charonton, the
infamous insane asylum, where under the guidance of the Mar,uis de &ade, a "rominent
resident at the time, our young courtesan:to:be was educated in the dar#er as"ects of the
craft. 3nce released from those dan# confines and "roclaimed cured, our girl vowed
never to be at the mercy of men again. and so followed a career "ath, the only one
available to one of her hue, that would allow her to live as an inde"endent woman of
means, of a sort.
'his, of course angered the "roletariat. For two reasons. 'hat here was someone of their
own strata, some felt, lower even, who had risen and through her god:given gifts and
ac,uired s#ills was enjoying the fruits of the u""er classes.
'he second reason still stands today.
-t*s a cause that has no allegiance to class or race or culture. -t is the fear a man, unsure
of himself feels when faced with a woman of confidence, a woman who won*t bow to
him on his terms but only hers. ( woman who owns her se+ and #now its value and sets
the "rice high. 5o haggling entertained, whatsoever ever.
'he courtesan was a symbol for the men of the revolution. ( symbol of something they
wanted but could never touch with their stubby little fingers. (nd so they must cut her
down.
-n the tumbrel that clattered its way to the s,uare, the Courtesan stood and smiled and
dared to wave. &he was cold and she was afraid. Petrified. But she was determined to
meet death eye to eye. %er chest heaved and she rearranged the red night dress to hid the
"ain and fear that wanted to scream into the morning. &he would not let it out. &he was
resigned.
(s the cart rounded a corner on the last leg of the route, there was a confusion in the
street. ( stac# of hay bales burst into flames, there was cursing and screams from a
balcony above. 'he crowds which had thinned, ran and muddled and bum"ed their way
out of the street. (nd from the high window, followed by flaming torches a man jum"ed,
or was "ushed, or "erha"s he flew, into the cart.
&ans "ro"er introduction, he "ushed the Courtesan to the floor, #ic#ed the driver in the
head and ,uic#ly usur"ed his "osition. 2nder the man*s direction, the horses s"ed off
down this lane and then that, coming to a dead end, only to have sec;;ret gates swing
o"en, and finally, out of the city. )hich, this being Paris, was a feat of heroism in and of
itself.
3nce into the forest the Courtesan dared to raise her head. -t had been ,uite a""arent to
her, somewhere around the Cham"s <lysee, that the man had loosed her from his mind,
as one forgets about a chic#en on the way home to eat it.
-n an attem"t to gain some sort of stance in the situation she demanded to #now where
she was being ta#en. %er voice, usually warm and sweet, li#e thic# dar# honey, came
ou;;;t more, due to fear, li#e sugarless lemonade : shrill and tart. -t so startled the man
that they almost left the "ath.
%e brought the horses to a slow trot and turned to loo# at his unintentional catch.
<+"ecting a sla" to the head, the courtesan was sur"rised by his res"onse. %e smiled.
&im"ly. Beautifully. )ithout desired. =%ow odd9, she thought, =-*ve never seen a smile
without want as it*s engine.9 (nd did the sun brea# through the clouds at that moment8
(nd did the bree>e "ic# u" the scent of freesia8 (nd did the broo# alongside the road,
not only babble but giggle8? Perha"s.
But to be sure, he smiled.
(nd they lived ha""ily ever after. &ort of.
For reasons irrelevant to this story they had to leave the country. (nd so after a short stay
in the woods they made their way by boat to the wilds of 5orth (merica, where one
could hide o"enly.
'o go into the details of the boat*s ocean crossing would be to list mundane details li#e
di>>iness, "u#ing, 1iarreah !however you s"ell it$ and a green "alour that overshadowed
her golden glow and "ersisted for wee#s. 'he "erfect disguise for a Courtesan #nown for
her dus#y beauty.
&uffice to say that by the end of the tri" love had blossomed. Cram"ed ,uarters and sea
sic#ness can do wonders to dis"el defiance and engender intimacy. (nd so when the
Courtesan and the man ste""ed onto the shores of 5orth (merica it was as husband and
wife. &ort of.
'hese "artners, unfashionable as it was at the time, considered each other e,uals. 'hese
"artners created a life and a home for themselves out of nothing, save the bounty that the
@reat Mother <arth laid out for their use.
'heir life together in the wilds was rich and dee". 0aughter was their music and 0ove the
force that #e"t them warm through the harsh winters. 'he Courtesan lost her taste for
finery and instead came to a""reciate the honesty in the rough hewn. 'he man*s formerly
wandering eye settled on the velvety chee# and ri"e li"s of the woman he called his wife.
5o others could gain his attentions for it was only here that he could be assured of #issing
the stars.
(nd life went on as it did. Cho""ing wood. Carrying water. (nd loving each other.
2ntil death came to call. 'his visit brought no crowds or revolution. 4ust the sound a
tree falling in the forest. ( dull thum" and the sigh of life leaving a body. 'he
Courtesan, at home, at the stove, felt something amiss. &he thought of her man and
smiled, then fell to the floor, gri""ed and cho#ing on the "ain and tears that, this time,
would not be held at bay.
&he ran blindly through the forest gas"ing against the hot blood that swelled her throat.
'he forest floor once so firm and inviting, now raced u" to meet her, face to face. %er
watery vision distorted the roc#s and logs that cri""led her way. &he felt she was being
clawed at by demons.
)hen she finally found her man, her chest was burning, her lungs were searing and her
throat was clogged with terror. )hen she finally saw her man, rage e+"ressed to the
heavens, cleared her throat and cooled her lungs and chest.
'he tree that rested on him had obliterated most of his body. -t was a "ul"y mess. But
his head was his own. (nd when she came into his view he smiled. (nd the sun shone
much brighter through the trees. (nd the scent of freesia thic#ened the air. (nd the
babbling broo# stilled for a moment, an im"erce"tible moment, in which the two lovers
said everything to each other.
-t always ends. You leave. 'hey leave. You die. 'hey die.
A A A
'here*s a witch in the forest that died today. &he s"o#e with a continental accent, and
was well versed in s"ells for love. &he must have been cra>y. %ow could a woman alone
be so ha""y. 'hey say she made a roc#ing chair out of the tree that #illed her lover. &he
died in it today. %olding a little bou,uet of freesias. 'he &un was shining. 'he broo#
ran dry.
'he <nd.