A dream box key
In the captain's desk

The piper's mutiny
A locked door

The lifeboats burn
Orange dots on black velvet

Listing
Listing

Pressure groan
He sits

Door bulge
Spray

In the drawer
In the drawer

Exploding torrent
The dream box opens

as i trudged home
one wintry day
i saw a deck of
playing cards
wilting
in the snow

i took them home
and played them
back to life

that was years ago

now they sit
in a dusty corner
and whisper
never forget

but i do sometimes

the dance hall smelled of chlorine and formaldehyde
as the corpses did the robot
and the music clattered around like
a drunk in the dark

i saw you and wondered why
you ignored me and then I remembered
it was me
who ignored you

then the dead shuffled around
and somebody broke a hip
and you left when I looked away
or because I looked away

but a zombie broke a hip and
who wouldn't look at that

your breath
over my shoulder

your voice
behind my back

these potions
bubble

these colors
run

your touch
whispers

your steps
murmur

these old eyes
can't see you

anymore

tap, click, shuffle

"where are you, sister?"
echoes of the old house

old wood
hard cherry

the staircase unfurls
from the haze

the hallway recedes
out of focus

laughter
pitter-patter

up and down
round the corner

again
and again

white dresses streak
"don't look back, sister"

tap, click, shuffle

the stairs
hold our secrets