MY GOLD AND SILVER

I have not eleven sisters; there is no stair beneath my bed
And when you step upon my gown somehow I recognise the tread
Where are the gold and silver trees we cross the lake to find?
These dancing shoes are all worn through -
You don't have to turn invisible when I can be so blind, well -

What holds you to the quest? What ties me to the castle?
What sends me to my rest? And will you hold me now?
If I mispronounce the words does it change the way things happen?
Don't say it's for the best, but only hold me now // my gold and silver

Watch me turn my hand this way and whisper low my heart’s desire
I'll change this beggar’s wish yet into a horse of fire
Where are the gold and silver leaves we gathered in our arms?
The magpie'd piper's lost his crown -
You may think you've heard these words before, I think it was a bardic charm, well -

Listen as I play these three notes upon a harp of bone
To conjure Merlin’s ghost out of the silent stone
These are the things that you must learn and understand
If you would hold what I have held within my sinister hand.

What gives you cause for hope? Who gave you leave to listen?
What silences my tongue? And will you hold me now?
If I look beneath the bed will I find the trapdoor open?
Don't say it isn't there, but only hold me now
What holds you to the quest? What ties me to the castle?
What sends me to my well-deserved rest? And will you hold me now?
If I mispronounce the words does it change things? Does that matter?
Don't say, don't say, please don't say it's for the best, but only hold me now
// My gold and silver - my gold and silver

Postcards from the travelling muse - my gold and silver
Just back from a year-long cruise - my gold and silver
Feather in a blue glass dish - my gold and silver
All this and the raven's kiss