The Lizard

"Henry," said Henrietta, "you've got a lot of nerve!"
"What madness could possess you to send me a purring cat?"
He looked beyond her reddened face, and on the tabletop
he spied a rusty iron cage. Then answered he without a word:
his answer was a glance of rage; for on the cage's capital
he saw the crown and sign of "The Order of the Lizard".

"So secretive you've been," said he, "about The Order Lizard."
"To join into that order dark would take a lot of nerve.
For even small mistakes, the punishment is capital;
into the dungeon pall you go, to face the roaring cat."
She stood him down intransigent and spoke a single word:
"Drazil!", she incanted and sprang onto the tabletop.

He bolted for the door, her still upon the tabletop,
and as he sank into his car, he sat upon a lizard.
His hands went numb, his feet grew cold; he uttered not a word,
as brain went blank and b.p. rose, fear rang in every nerve.
He threw the car into reverse and wished he had the cat.
Into the street he backed, then mad dashed to the capital.

He had no clue what he would do when reaching capital;
with mind ablaze and in a haze, he crossed the Texas tabletop
and noticed, as he went, the walls entombed by yellow cat
's-claw vines. When nearly there, his view was blocked by lizard
on his windshield. Bare rubber streaks mark loss of nerve;
into the ditch they curve - - - And "Speeding" was the Trooper's word.

"A nightmare dream?" he asked himself, but uttered not a word;
while mental fog engulfed his bed in E.R. Capital;
and on the ceiling white, his mind's eye saw a severed nerve;
and by his bedside, reptile claws were on the tabletop.
My toes I feel, and fingers move; what of this dreaded lizard?
Who is this reptile girl to whom I gave a purring cat?

He thought of job he was to start, to drive a D9 CAT,
and panicked that he could not speak, no way to get them word!
He tried to rise, but tubes restrained him like an evil lizard.
He backward fell and tubes ripped out, held by the I.V capital
which lurched as drunk, and fell onto the rolling tabletop.
The reptile apparition popped. He laughed and found his nerve.

Then rolling out of bed to leave the capital; he shoved the tabletop
aside, and steeled his nerve to face head on the apparition lizard
and shouting, "Cat!", he ran full speed from E.R. without another word.