Vashta Nerada

• Adara Enthaler, Grade 11
• Poetry
• 2010

The crisp thin sheet, gleaming white against the gloom
Scant protection against that which creeps
A scared face appears and glances ‘round the room
Framed by the cloth through which it peeps

Flickering shapes, shadows beyond the window
Spindly crooked fingers screech across the glass
The small child shivers and wriggles down low
Waiting for the night to pass

Heart keeps time with the thump of the door
Banging as a wind whistles through the rooms and halls
Shadows become alive, slither across the floor
As panicked fear increases, a heavy silence falls

The door begins to gape, pushed slowly open wide
Bright light banishing the gloom and the dark
Unseen creatures scuttle away to hide
The monsters are gone, leaving not a mark