[Intro] [Lute soft and dripping; flute breathy; tavern goes quiet] The fen took her hand when the moon was low, And I watched her sink where the black reeds grow. [Verse 1] [Lute and drone; drum like a slow pulse] She waited in white by the water’s side, Promised her heart, and she swore as my bride. The fog grew thick, and the earth grew thin, Her vow was drowned where the reeds pulled in. [Verse 2] [Fiddle joins, bow trembling] Her voice still rang as the water closed, A hymn of love that the fen imposed. I reached, but the mire held her fast, And dragged her bones to its hungry grasp. [Verse 3] [Lute bare; drone low and suffocating] They say the fen keeps what it claims, No priest, no torch, no holy names. I still walk there when the dusk is near, Her song in the mud is all I hear. [Bridge] [Flute shrill, fiddle bends mournful notes] Was it curse, or oath, or sin undone? The fen keeps silence, but drowns the sun. I kissed the water, it kissed me back, And left her veil in the weeds, turned black. [Outro] [Lute rings hollow; drone fades into silence] The fen took her hand when the moon was low… And I walk alone where the black reeds grow.
