Cordially Disinvited

By Amanda Antoinette Rebello

An overated privilege to fathom

Dying's an unseemly cowardice

Dying's easy, all-knowing they say

A home burns bright under

Inviting warmth and candlelight

The guests arrive as the clock ticks

A temperamental house

A moving castle if you must

The celebration is still underway

A secret none have figured

The house consumes its prey

Just another fun party trick

When Lady Sleep knocks

At the edge of consciousness

The door walks away

When Master Rationale voices

His abnormally sound theorizations

The walls grow thick

Yet when Lady Doom walks in

With Despair clinging to her soul

The door doesn't stray

When Master Dread pronounces

His sordid opinions all over again

The halls accept the schtick

When Lady Paranoia sets

Her wares in your cupboards

The floor gleams against the array

When Extraordinaire Insecurity struts

Into center stage we watch dazzled

At his subtle yet charming gimmick

When the Feisty Funambulist bounces from

Spiralling pillars and twists

And throws the bouquet

When the Quartet roars

Propaganda so loud it's deafening/blinding

The show ends so quick

When Master Mutilation gives

The Vote of Thanks, blinding fireworks

Show the overlooked decay

The party dies down, the guests scream and wail

Mistress Memory has resurfaced

Pooling humour fashions people sick

Sir Self Awareness slithered right in

While the crowd was distracted

Perched high above the disarray

The Walls bleed and the rot smells

Foul tempers ignite and clash

Empty the crowded halls quick

But the doors that once had a mind

Of their own, seals the party's fate

The house, a monster in its naivete.

By Amanda Antoinette Rebello