Flying Fish

I know you find me whimsical in this:
That for excuse I bring a children’s tale
And seek to mollify you with a stolen kiss
And all your righteous anger to derail
But wait - my love - you must hear the details

This strange phenomenon has made me late
I know you have a right to be irate

I left the office half an hour past five
Intending to acquire a takeout dish
And then a flask of Chardonnay contrive
Intending to attend your every wish
I stopped to get your favorite - flying fish

But wait! Allow me to regale you more
This tale is strange, I promise not to bore

I thought the counter server rather strange
He wasn’t Ralph, who usually tends the place
But still he had the fish and made me change
Then thanked me so effusively, post haste
I quickly and politely left that space

So shaken was I by my strange ordeal
I took a wrong turn, wound up in a field

And this is where the story takes a turn
As I sat there considering my woes
The air in front of me began to burn
And up between the cornstalks there arose
A sight amazing - so much so I froze

A silver clamshell rose up before me
And turned, and hovered just above the trees

It opened up a lengthy landing ramp
And then I heard a flapping in the car
And felt myself assaulted by the damp
The box of flying fish had come ajar
I tell you this - I know it seems bizarre

The fish were sitting up upon their fins
And staring at the silver light within

So what else could I do? I took them out
And carried them toward the opening door
Before I had a chance to think or doubt
They hovered, and the fish began to soar
They swam into the ship I’d seen before

I’m not ashamed to say I climbed the stair
And only fleetingly thought to beware

Within the ship, I found myself the guest
Of every kind of life that haunts the sea
The walls were carpeted by brilliant crests
Of sea corals, and bright anemones
And very polite were they all to me

They bade me with their captain’s crew to dine
And fed me from a smorgasboard sublime

And then at last, when I was quite replete
The squid who served as captain thanked me well
And said he hoped we once again would meet
Although his ship was heading for the swells
And ocean depths where more of their kind dwell

They let the ship down at our own back gate
And that, my love, is why I’ve been so late.

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Format: Rhyme Royal
Prompt: NaPoMoFo Day 10