11.14.2022

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i am the monarch and the slave

but the court is empty

i command no one, i obey no one

i am the mastermind and the victim

i manipulate myself until sincerity is an alien

my tears fall, hoping to garner attention

i fool no one, i pity no one

because the court is empty

i am prey to gravity's assault

a jeweled crown forces my peasant head down

i stagger about, i stand tall

my whimpers of protest stamped out by me

i have all the recognition and none at all

because the court is empty

i glare at the walls with mirrors, confined

my face reflected, my voice echoed, it nauseates me

i don't know if the sobs for forgiveness are mine

but whose else would they be?

i scream for my crimes, i dream and i pine

but the court is still empty

no monarch, no slave, no one.