The winding roots
Of weathered trees
Snaked through the silent streets
And tapped on windows,
High and low,
Tap
Tap.
Startled children shook
Off their sleep,
And listened with rising fear.

The forest began to hum,
A dark and chilling sound,
That vibrated through the trees,
And created haunting melodies.
The eerie song of the forest
Put the children in a trance,
And like a pied piper,
Led them
To its deepest, darkest depths.

In the shadows
Of the forest,
Every child was awakened
By the ending of the song.
He snatched them up,
With gnarled roots
And wizened branches
And held them high,
Up above his gnashing teeth.

They began to cry for help,
But no help was to come,
And the last sound
That they heard
Was a quiet, mocking
Laugh.