**The Witch in the Walls** [Intro – sparse, dissonant, whispered + sudden giggle] (soft, cracked) I hear you breathing… Through the plaster… Through the wood… (sudden unhinged giggle) Heehee… I hear *everything*… [Verse 1 – slow 6/8 feel, intimate then sharp] I live between the beams and the brick Where the cold seeps in and the shadows stick You painted over my name years ago But names don’t die when the walls still know I watched you grow, I watched you sleep I licked the secrets you tried to keep Every prayer you whispered into the dark Came straight to me… and left a mark (giggle turning into a short shriek) Such a sweet… little… mark… [Pre-Chorus – tempo shift, unstable] Hush now, child Don’t make a sound I’m already inside I’m already around (sudden bark) AND I NEVER LEAVE! [Chorus – heavy, odd-time groove, melodic but cracked] I am the witch in the walls! I am the breath you can’t explain! I am the creak when no one’s there! I am the chill that knows your name! I am the witch in the walls! I never left, I only thinned! You can burn the house down to the ground! I’ll still be singing underneath your skin! (laughing through the last line) UNDERNEATH YOUR SKIN! [Verse 2 – progressive shift, more chaotic phrasing] I taught the mice to speak your fears I taught the pipes to drink your tears When you walk alone from room to room You’re never alone… I make the gloom You feel me most when the lights burn low When the floorboards hum what you shouldn’t know I don’t need candles, I don’t need flame I only need the sound of your name (soft scream-laugh, pitch rising and falling) SAY IT AGAIN… SAY IT AGAIN… SAY IT! [Pre-Chorus – broken rhythm] Hush now, child Don’t look too deep I’m in the silence I’m in your sleep (low feral growl) AND I’M SO HUNGRY… [Chorus – heavier, more unstable] I am the witch in the walls! I am the breath you can’t explain! I am the creak when no one’s there! I am the chill that knows your name! I am the witch in the walls! I never left, I only thinned! You can burn the house down to the ground! I’ll still be singing underneath your skin! [Bridge – fully progressive and unhinged] (whisper → sudden shriek → manic laughter → guttural) You can salt the corners! You can hang the herbs! You can say your little prayers! BUT I WAS HERE BEFORE THE HOUSE WAS BUILT! AND I WILL BE HERE WHEN THE LAST BRICK FALLS! (manic, theatrical) I WILL WEAR YOUR HOUSE LIKE A SECOND SKIN! (laughing and gasping) LIKE A SECOND… SKIN! [Breakdown – shifting time signatures, chaotic] STAY! STILL! LISTEN! FEEL! I! AM! ALREADY! HOME! (wild laughter) HOME! HOME! HOME! HOME! [Final Chorus – completely unhinged, progressive climax] I AM THE WITCH IN THE WALLS! I AM THE DARK BEHIND YOUR EYES! I AM THE VOICE THAT LEARNED YOUR VOICE! I AM THE TRUTH THAT NEVER DIES! I AM THE WITCH IN THE WALLS! AND NOW YOU FINALLY UNDERSTAND! YOU DIDN’T FIND ME IN THE NIGHT… I WAS WAITING FOR YOUR HAND! (screamed + laughing) GIVE ME YOUR HAND! GIVE IT TO ME! [Outro – broken, shifting between soft and feral] I’m in the walls… I’m in the walls… I’m in the walls… …and now I’m in you too… (soft, satisfied, cracked laughter fading into silence) Heeheehee… heehee…
