Maleficent

slithering in through the pores of my skin/ she makes her way into my bloodstream/ her body with a million miniscule limbs/ finds its way into my stomach, ruffling against my villi/ where she sits nestled – the white snake – as if her cosmos were my digestive system.

enmeshed, ensconced like water in a white conch/ her calls pierce my peace/ she is my puppeteer hidden within/ she commands my strings.

she is the rotten pit, she is the dreary spirit/ she hates, she abhors/ she dances like a Stygian river.

i try to be the lotus perfumed warrior against her/ my pink scarves and anklets of silver/ follow my body to battle/ a war with fear.

there is a sudden vortex/ my valour disappears/ and i retreat still armed, from my battle with Maleficent/ metallic tongued and lily-livered.