Once upon a midnight dreary

In the dreary, midnight hours, my mind was consumed with sorrow,
As I pondered over volumes of forgotten lore, weak and weary,
Suddenly, a tapping at my chamber door, a sound so eerie,
Rapping gently, as if from a visitor, I whispered, "only this and nothing more."

It was December, the bleakest of months, and the dying embers
Wrought their ghostly presence upon the floor, each one a reminder
Of my longing for the morrow, vainly seeking surcease from sorrow
For the lost Lenore, the rare and radiant maiden, now forevermore.

The rustling of the purple curtains filled me with terror,
Thrilling me with fears never felt before, and so to calm my beating heart,
I stood repeating, "it's only a visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door,
This it is and nothing more."

But my soul grew stronger and I opened the door, only to find
Darkness and nothing more. Peering into the abyss, I wondered and feared,
Dreaming dreams that no mortal had ever dared to dream before,
But the silence was unbroken, no token of an answer, only the whispered word "Lenore?"

Returning to the chamber, my soul burning, I heard a tapping, louder than before,
Convinced it was something at my window lattice, I opened it to explore,
Only to find a stately Raven perched above my chamber door,
Perched, sat and said nothing more.

The Raven beguiled my sad fancy with its stern decorum,
And though it had little meaning or relevancy, I couldn't help agreeing,
No living human had ever seen a bird above their chamber door,
With a name like "Nevermore."

The Raven spoke only that one word, as if its soul was poured out,
Never fluttering a feather or uttering another word,
I murmured, "other friends have flown before," but the bird replied "Nevermore."

Startled by the stillness broken by this apt reply,
I wondered, "doubtless, what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master." And with that, the Raven flew out the door,
Leaving me with nothing more than the memory of its ominous "Nevermore."