My half sister is Panic.

A manic meteorite in cahoots with the conspiracists

A charismatic child with no sense

Utterly stupid and prone to tantrums

A sobering taunt that brings you out of your world

Pulling you into hers to suffocate you with her foolishness

So that it becomes all you think about

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How dense she is!

Telling stories about things she’s only ever seen

On TV because she doesn’t read books

Sucking the composure out of you like a Marlboro

Telling lies about a new job or a lost friend

New illness or an old flame come back to haunt

But she is the ghost girl!

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Wandering thresholds with her hair in plaits

An imposter, all tapioca white

Whistling for attention and flickering the lights

Needy and sorrowful, always moaning

She’ll say look at the moon tonight!

It looks like a cancerous lymph node

And you’ll look