MARCOMIR.
He forgets;
But, Geneviva, if a thousand years
Broke over me, when Time had cleared his storms
I should look up and know your face by heart.
GENEVIVA.
Then stay, stay, stay with me!
Have you once thought
Through the long years how it will fare with me—
Nothing to watch except the sullen waste
Of my own beauty? Marcomir, I hold
If there be judgment it shall be required
Of women what delight their golden hair
Has yielded—have they put its wealth to use,
Or suffered it to lie by unenjoyed?
I rather would die spendthrift, nothing left
Of my rich heritage, save memory
Of the wild, passing pleasure it conferred
Than keep it untransmuted. And you choose
To take from me the only eyes that care
To mirror mine! I have so often thought
That some day I shall drown myself: the water
Reflects me with desire.
MARCOMIR.
[bitterly, as he turns away] A soul so wide
In innocence, so regal, on the day
He wedded, he appointed me your squire!
GENEVIVA.
[following him]
He keeps you with him, you can read his heart,
You know what way he travels, when his soul
Flies homeward. Tell me—’tis the only knowledge
I crave for in the world—does Carloman
Still hold me in affection? I beseech,
Tell me the truth. He loves you——
MARCOMIR.
Yes, he loves,
He does not use me for his purposes.
[perceiving PEPIN]
Not Carloman—his brother on the stair
Laughs at your light behaviour. So you lose
One last poor opportunity.