The Dark And Shadowy Shape

The Dark And Shadowy Shape

Lightning struck the old oak tree,
Cleaving it down through the heart.
A thunderous crack shook the air
As it trembled and fell apart.

What happened next is an eerie tale
Of a dark thing inside the tree
That haunted all the country side
When lightning set it free.

It began when the oak was young;
The forest was getting dark,
Lovers strolling hand in hand,
Carved initials in its bark.

They vowed their love would never end,
As they kissed beneath the oak,
The love they had was evident
In every word they spoke.

Walking in the woods one day,
She saw among the trees,
Her lover kissing someone else;
It made her warm blood freeze.

In the shadows, she stood watching,
While her soul filled with despair.
Her lover, hearing an anguished sound,
Turned 'round and saw her there.

He turned again and walked away
With the other on his arm.
Heading back in the direction
Of the other's wealthy farm.

She ran home as fast she could,
And got a length of rope.
Ending it all from the branch of the tree,
Was the only way she could cope.

Her body died, but her spirit lived on,
Trapped inside the tree,
Until the dark and fateful day
The lightning set it free.

She was now a shadowy shape;
Revenge was what she sought.
Hurting him like she was hurt
Was her motivating thought.

She haunted all the country side,
And terrorized every town
With her dark and shadowy presence,
As she tried to hunt him down.

She'd wail at windows and howl at doors,
Terrifying those inside,
Searching in vain for her lover,
The one for whom she had died.

She wandered through the country side
For fifty years or more,
Never finding the bitter revenge
That she was hoping for.

One sun filled day she found a grave
With an old and weathered stone.
Her name was carved into the side.
It was standing there alone.

The memory of betrayal
By the one she loved the most,
Made hatred of her lover
Run rampant in this ghost.

As she hovered above the grave,
She looked off to the right,
Another stone was standing there;
Weeds hiding it from sight.

His name was carved into the side,
And just like on the tree,
Their initials were carved side by side
For everyone to see.

The date etched there was the day she'd died;
He took his life as well.
The day she saw them kissing there,
He was under a siren's spell.

On his way home, he walked by the oak,
And found her on the tree.
Seeing her lifeless form on the rope
Had shocked him and set him free.

He understood why she had died,
And found another rope.
Ending it all from the branch of their tree,
Was the only way he could cope.

They had been found by hunters,
Hanging side by side.
The lovers both were buried
On the same day they had died.

The shadowy shape gave a grateful sigh
And vanished into the light;
Ending her haunt of the countryside
And her wails through the dark of night.