Both reaching into the dark   &.  grasping at souls   &.  forgotten by the gods   &.  hated by the mortal   ,   embracing in the shadows   &.   creating a world that fit them.    â iâm fine. i have this under control. â  voice shaking as the world drowns their softness  &.  shadows crush them into the pavement. they are scared of the flickering in the mirror   ,  of the way that their skin doesnât fit at the edges  &.  their eyes are too bright. their heart is others hands  ,   being devoured   &.  they savor the taste   &.  worship Aoiâs life stains their mouths.    â just shut up  &.  dont talk. I need to figure out what is real. â      splintering with the heaviness of creation  ,  pulling at strings trying to piece together the knot that wonât come undone.  tangled into themself  ,  into a beast that ate their beauty  &.  wore their skin  ,  prowling the streets. or was that them ? who are they ?    â am i ? what ? help. â    lights  ,  waning like a siren with infrequent brilliance  ,  a strobe light of the eyes that watch from corners of rooms. they are looking  ,  watching  ,  they are on their skin. the searchlight     on the top of the roof where they burnt all their holiness on a pyre.    â i dont need help ! im okay !â  lashing out at the bright lights that pour from closed blinds  ,   creating more unreal to fix the spiraling thoughts. Â