The Demise of Sleepy Fin

The Castle Hoogensnorp was notorious- no doubt.

There were creekings on the inside and shufflings on the out.

At night time shadows sneaked and tittered-

Fleeting phantoms leapt and flittered-

Twitchy rodents peaked and skittered in the dimly lit throne room.

And moonlight from between the towers-

Counting dreadfully the hours-

Rather than reflecting flowers seemed to cast a silver doom.

It did not bother in the least King Pepper Trottersmoo.

It did not seem to cause concern for Queen Grettapple Boo.

It did not cause much upset to the Princess Bellamoth.

Or frighten the oft-frightened Prince Tobias Mottengroth.

It did not seem to worry Lady Ginbloom Hamlinhauer

Nor seem to ruffle in the least Sir Rolland Sliptimshauer.

Of all the many pets kept by the blacksmith Grim Labuffet,

The only creature up at night was spider, Erich Tuffet –

Who by all accounts was known to stay up night times anyway

(No doubt ’twas indigestion from the blood he drank all day)

Insomnia alone belonged to little Princess Fin –

Who tossed and turned and turned and tossed (which did her curls in).

Before her bedtime she required

No less than seven readers hired

Expressly to divert her tired

Attention from her tears.

And after they had done their part

The somewhat famous opera star,

Janette Laroo Krumpmunsingar

Would lullaby at least an hour

In hopes to qualm her fears.

BUT

Despite the thirty nightlights made from baby pixie-haunches,

Regardless of the dream-catchers adorned with magic conches,

Despite the witches’ brews Fin would refuse to be sedated

(So sure she was, by snoozing she would soon become belated).

One morning in the summer of poor Princess Fin’s eighth year-

(After eight years with no sleeping Finny’s hair looked mighty queer)

While doddling down a well-worn path towards Hoogensnorp’s treat shop,

The summer sun a’shining and the shadows half forgot-

The phantoms and the rodents and the moon drowned in the light-

Fin’s sleep-deprived, dazed, addled brain confused her left with right.

And down a less- than- savory path her feet beat past a den

Of hungry, princess-loving wolves delighted to meet Fin.

Had she but paid attention to her tutors she’d have known

That wolf-cubs have a taste for those who wander out alone.

Especially those who amble through the forest half-awake

Uncertain of which dangers are real and which dangers are fake.

If only Fin had listened but a moment to her Father!

Believed him when he told her that the nighttime could not harm her-

Believed him when he told her growing children need their rest,

Rest to learn their letters and keep hair looking its best.

Regardless of the Castle being ridiculously creepy,

What did Fin in was not the dark but rather being sleepy.