You see the corpse of a man that once was
You see the rooting of his flesh
You see his eyes contain no life
As his soul holds no strife

The man that once was now has maggots on his flesh
His blood now filled with parasites
You watch from what you presume to be a safe distance away
As you watch the man who doesn't stir

The tendrils of the beast can be seen by your eyes
The whip around seeking for something to grasp
The others that you know and also knew the man who once was
Wish to simply be around the man for they don't see the beast

You follow the others as they come towards it
You notice the tendrils have dispersed
You step close enough to see the man that used to be
The mans eyes showing a soul and his eyes showing life

The man enjoys his time and laughs at things that are said
His voice caring like that of a brother
How can this be the man you saw from afar
He is quite opposite of what seemed

The people that you both know have left
The only things standing there are you and it
The tendrils reappear along with the image of the beast
How can this be, can this beast really be the man

You raise your defenses back up as you watch and observe
You wait for the first move to be made
You prepare for the beast as it begins to speak
The voice much more harsh and unlike that of that before

"They are gone and now it is only us" it speaks
"I must leave" you reply
"COWARD" bellows the beast "Do you not want to face me?"
"I fear what lurks in you that is why I must" you answer

"You fool, this image that you see" It persisted
"this image is what you have cast upon me"
"this is your own fault and none of my own" you reply
You stand there watching as the beast cackles

"my doing you say? how can it be my doing for something that you only see?"
"There are surely others that can see this" you reply
"you don't understand do you, because of you seeing me.."
"..You give me life, because of you seeing me as such I exist"

"That's a lie" you retort "Because you are what lurks deep beneath"
The beast smirks "that is true, I do lurk beneath"
"but only underneath chains and bolts that hold me in place"
"The others will only see the lively child for they know not of me"

The tendrils begin to head towards you but you stand your ground
For they stop not to far from where you stand
"your defenses are up quite well, but I wonder if you can still see"
"see what?" you reply "that you could attack at any moment?"

The beast begins to chuckle and then laugh
You cut it short by persisting what it is that you might not see
"Your own parasite" it replies "I am not the only one who is infected"
You grit your teeth "for every living being has their own parasite"

"I can assure you I'm not infected with this parasite" you answer
"LIES!! it can be seen, it's a disease that everyone holds" it replies
"Your fear feeds your parasite, and because of it you've formed this disease"
"Like hell I have, I look nothing like you" you reply with a grin

"But I can see your beast as clearly as you can see mine" it replies with a smirk
"your beast just holds a shield and surrounds itself like an impenetrable force"
"It's quite pathetic to say the least, you think you will avoid it but it's impossible"
"Every man, woman, and child have this parasite including you"

"But it is all with my own reason" you respond
"A SELFISH REASON" the beast growls
Your stance not as firm but you keep your gaze on the beast
"I care not, for your reasons no matter how severe, for you also have the parasite"

"nobody acknowledges the beast within themselves until they know what it is"
"we maybe gruesome and horrid but we can still be tamed"
"but we have our times when we snap from our leash, only to be chained up again"
Says all of this from the beast

The beast sounds as if he inhales a deep breath
For it then transforms back into the boy who you saw before with the others
"We all have it, it is unfair to think that I'm the only one with a parasite" says the boy
"What is this?" you ask "are you the beast?"

"I keep it on it's leash, for now he is chained back up so he cannot appear" he replies
"unless he is provoked enough to appear"
The boys gaze is far more sadder than it was before
"you decide what you see, you chose between seeing me or seeing the beast"

The gaze changes from sadness to pity as he looks at you
"But mind you, if you only see the beast then I will only see you as yours"
"it's a pitiful beast to say the least, for it thrives on your fear"
The boy turns away and begins to walk but his voice still clear

"I shouldn't expect you to understand what my disease is"
"for it's what the parasite has turned into for me"
"I just hope that you can see"
"That you are also a beast like me"