Rumours of Death

a sonnet

by Jenny Hayward

The only time you let your passion stir
Was to avenge the death of someone dear
The only woman you had loved - for her
You searched and could not find; her death your fear
And then you found she lived and you'd been spurned
For secret power - she had spied on you!
Your rosy vision of her overturned -
You killed her - traitor, she had lied to you!
You'd always scorned emotion, deemed it weak;
You said "Trust was for fools, and fools soon died.
And always fatal: the heroic streak.
Run if you can; the universe is wide."
Revenge and bitterness in you ablaze
Dry dust and ashes eating all your days.

Author's note: this was written when I was still in high school, when we
were studying sonnets in English. Which means I actually wrote it
before I'd heard of fandom. It's not really a great surprise that it
was about Avon, though!