The terror of Armreach farm

1 month in hiding, mostly due to forgetting my blog exists at times and finding other exciting and interesting things to do :) school work for one! Below is one of a series of poems I've written recently: random poems about silly things, and some nonsense poems inspired by my Year 1 kids' work on nonsense poetry. I'll post 'When a monster came to our school' soon. I just need to iron out kinks first.

See if you can guess what the 'beast' is before the last verse!

The terror of Armreach farm

I looked out on the moonlit farmyard
The sky like a tranquil lagoon,
The wind moved the leaves in a nearby tree,
The moon would be rising soon.

And still as the gravestones, it waited,
Its heart dark as the deep night sky
Ready to spring and swift mayhem to bring
When the moon stood complete, and high.

And quiet asleep in their stalls now,
The animals slumbered in peace.
From the gold eiderdown of the small of ducks
To the shimmering sheeps’ winter fleece.

And still as the mountains, it waited,
Its heart like the indigo sky
Ready to spring and swift mayhem to bring
When the moon stood complete, and high.

I opened the door with shiver.
I guess where the beast might be.
In truth I knew not, of his new hiding spot,
So I waited, resting on one knee.

And still as a statue, it waited,
Its heart dark as blackcurrant pie,
Ready to spring and swift mayhem to bring
When the moon stood complete, and high.

As midnight tolled out ‘cross the farmyard,
An unearthly silence swift fell,
And the dull ghostly tones of the ancient clock’s groans
Rang out 12 times, it beast’s deathly knell.

And slow as the ages, it wakened,
Beating heart as adrenaline flowed,
And fast through its mind, with chaotic thoughts,
Its fancies began to unfold.

Quick as a whippet I looked up,
A shadow had stirred to the side.
In the stable I saw, darker than there before,
A deep shadow’s malevolent eyes.

And unmoving, the shadow stood staring,
Unaware of my foolhardy plan,
No mere man, it believed, could prevent him,
Once its frenzied assault began.

Like lightning the beast sprang towards me,
Its hooves like the thundering of drums.
I knew only one move would save me this night,
Or else, to its fury, succumb.

And fast as the planets it bolted,
For the ground to which I was firm bound.
My hand swiftly reached for my tattered coat pouch,
And flung its contents to the ground.

The screeching of hooves was tremendous,
As I breathed, barely making a noise.
Would the beast take the bait, precious seconds to wait,
And let me spring out of my poise?

And careful, it sniffed at the truffles,
Shrewd wariness clear in its eyes.
Did it trust in this treat, would it leap for my feet?
When it lowered its tree-like thighs.

My lunge was as quick as a cheetah,
as bold as a school-teacher’s stare,
the beast looked up but too late now,
its squealing shattering the air.

And frenzied, the beast struggled madly.
With its tail thrashing wide through the air,
Til the moon was consumed by a nearby cloud,
And still was the beast’s bristled hair.

The sweat glistened fresh on my forehead
As I stooped to retrieve the still form.
And shouldering the beast with a weary grunt,
I crossed the now quieted farm.

The main barn door creaked as it opened,
As if knowing what lay in my arms,
And the straw crackled loud, as if cheering
My saving the farmyard from harm.

Yet I gently replaced the wee bundle,
Knowing soon I would face it again.
For the moon was the curse of this small sleeping form:
A monster within the mundane.

And so it repeats, every cycle,
As the moon becomes fuller each day.
I silently wait in the dark twilit yard,
For the twelve bells to summon my prey.

The sound of the low shallow grunting
As that swill-laiden smell cuts the air,
And I whisper ‘goodbye’ to the red beady eyes
Of the Were-Piglet. ‘Were’, piggy, ‘were’.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated. It is far from perfect I know, but then, it is just a bit of fun!

TheWeeScottie

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weird is just your own personal brand of normal