The Prince of Denmark is no fool,

and yet the aggressive bear

that sniffs and breathes the perspiration lingering

at the back door of the Prince’s castle is enough

to send the guards out, armed with spears, to fight the shadow

of what passed as cold deep frost, this bear

never hibernates.

 

The bear, perhaps a relic or offspring of another terrifying creature,

the type that heroes are born to fight and have mead

run over in great abundance as the fires lick the mantelpiece

and scorch the legends of