Colin, well written, but I miss the rhyme and hint of rhyme you have in S1
in S2

I came with friends from different places, +
wished to introduce *
to one another familiar faces, +
imagined with fondness *
how they might discuss *
around the table
what each had thought alone, #
find company when they expected none, #
and so began a dialogue
that matched the discretion of cutlery,
the mildness of flowers in a vase. +

I listened and joined in from time to time,
unaware of another dialogue uncovered,  (internal $
not in words but a darker tongue, $
a deeper bonding of bone
beneath the facile skin, (internal ^
a malice from nowhere, @
a pressure at last at critical strength, (internal ^
from hazardous shafts escaping,
till I found clear @
the shape of a beast I could not control, ^
rising to devour me.

More than there seems at first, so perhaps more of them as end rhyme.

A minor point however.  Simply what I see.

Thanks.

Gary