Open the basement door a creak

One foot on the stair

Come on, I say, don’t be meek.

There's nobody there.

A rumbling comes from the back of a throat

Rises from the depths of the dark below

A few more steps- watch me go!

Deep growls I hear, drawing near

What is that monster that I fear?

Prowling, waiting, at the bottom stair

This menacing machine does not care

Dad says it heats the house

I snort, likely story for this hunter

Creep downstairs like a mouse

No time for any sort of a blunter

It waits for little kids like me

No, stand your ground, don’t you dare flee

It whispers for its prey

Come down, it says, play

It watches for you

This stalking thing

Ready to snatch you

The basement’s king

It rules the dark!

It's the furnace in the basement.