Nothing adorns the flyleaf page of this book save a perfect imprint of
two lips.

Even now, it smokes slightly.

Witch's Rap II

I am the witch
in the goblin suit.
Welcome to my house
of ill repute.

Step right up, dear,
step right in
as I divine your name
in flame and wind.

What do I spy
in my scrying glass?
Why, your two lips
kissing my fat ass.

(Say it!)
Valindra, Valindra, VALIIIINDRA!

Fortune yeller,
Rhyme schemer,
Bad bitch
(Best believer her)

Old witch
here to teach you
all these manners
(please and thank you!)

& mind the door
when you come through.

Tell 'em all
Valindra sent you.

Witch's Villanelle

I am the Darksworn's concubine.
I seduced him in my office.
Now he knows I take what's mine.

I braid my hair with roses, fine
White strands and fat, black posies. Is
It me, the Darksworn's concubine,

Or the one I've displaced? The line
Blurs. So do I. Cue the chorus:
So now he knows. I take what's mine,

Then a little more. Read the signs,
Dear, wind and flame, scrying glasses.
I am the Darksworn's concubine:

A pointy black hat and some wine,
A little wisp who grows cautious--
She knows too, but she doesn't mind.

Will he attend me soon? Divine
The secret of our livered kiss?
I am the Dark (swear it!)--I'll bind
Him to me. Does he know he's mine?

Witch's Curse

What men can bind, I can undo
And spill some tea before I'm through:
Dear sister, now I call on you:

An iron belt to slow you down--
I stole it from Xymeria--
Wound on your brow, a cursed crown.
Side effects may include diphtheria.

Next a gift from our first meeting--
Natty lace, a handkerchief.
(Now hear me, Mama! I'm entreating
As I conjure dark mischief.)

Find a key to unlock flame.
Burn up the night, my little star.
Will you ever be the same
After the curse of Illistarre?

Witch's Rhyme

For the Chimera, properly rebuked

Quiet as a mouse
I slip inside your house
And curse your spouse.

Silent as a drum,
At you I bite my thumb.
Look out: here I come!

Wicked as a snake,
Whatever's left, I'll take
For it is mine to break.

You'll watch Ilromie burn.
She will not return
Except inside an urn.

Witch's Rap III

I am the witch
In the goblin sack.
I've gained a few pounds,
But I'm still a snack.

Come on in, girl.
Step right up.
I've got enough tea
To fill your cup.

I'll read the leaves
Or count your cards,
But first pay tribute
To the Queen of Bards.

What does it sound like
When you say my name?
Number one bitch
Scrying in this game:

Valindra, Valindra, Valiiiiiindra!

That old witch of Acadia,
Gimbol's garden lady, yuh,
More hats than heads,
Do you think she's afraid of ya?

One more time like a third attack--
Watch out, dears. Olgarda's back--

But I'm still

Valindra, Valindra, Valiiiiiindra!

The Spider and the Witch

For the Lore Keeper of Tragedy, recently departed

A little spider creeps into Serin
while an old witch weeps, her eyes despairing.
Goblin tears, for the breaking of curses,
are potent, perhaps more than these verses
can connote. What is it that the old witch wrote?
And to whom did she address the note?
Who can say? Only the wind whispers now
to the witch. The flames do not dance or glow

as she inhales their fumes. Her best scrying
glass is gone. Here she sits, alone, crying
as a spider clambers up her shoulder.
She walks to the window. It is colder
than she remembers. Once, she liked it here.
The spider whispers something in her ear.

Suite Obit

For Szrevan

I.
I bid farewell to the Serpent King
And all the hand-wringing he would bring.
Of dragons and slith--
What else did I myth?--
Serin's fat lady is ready to sing.

II.
So long to Serin's toughest Warlord.
Dead and gone--but, hey--he's not bored.
He clanked into the room
To everyone's doom
But more tenor he couldn't afford.

III.
If you're looking for a sign, this is it--
You were feared, now you're gone & O shit--
You kicked your career
Right in the rear,
Chased off by a recalling quasit.

IV.
If I'm bitter it's only because
I watched you turn 'is' into 'was.'
Consider this a warning:
I'm bad at mourning--
What's worse than a witch with a buzz?

I Put on My Black Hat

And leave the door unlocked.
I smear my lips with blueberries
and autograph every book.
Little children rise
From their graves like flowers
to attend me. Hello, dear,
hello, hello--I greet them
with a witch's heart.
Here come the mourners
in a fine parade to dress
me for their party.
I stand on the table
and shock them with my tricks.
The roses reek of metal
and turn to knives in my fist.
I will not wait much longer.

Witch's Rap IV

I am the witch in the goblin cell.
I tried to escape, but it hurt like hell.

I am the witch with a thousand names,
And I've foreseen this world go up in flames.

Tell me--

What should I do with a realm like this
That treats its arts as if worthless?

Tell me--

What would you do with a realm like that?
If it made you evil, wicked, fat?

Oh, yes:

I am the witch with the wobbling chins,
And I'll eat your children and your sins.

What should I do for this wretched realm
With a spiteful imp drunk at the helm?

Say my name. Say it again.
Say it one more time before the end.

I am the witch you came to kill.
Swear your oath? I never will.

What shall I do with a realm like this?
Mark it with ink and a little piss.

And don't forget a sloppy kiss.

XO

Valindra