The Lost Children

He lured them on the bus one day

Drove all those kiddies far away

Clutching bookbags, in rows seated

He took them 'cause he had been cheated

Took them far, and took them Through,

To a weird place he knew

Where time stood still, and hearts grew black

And they'd never find their own way back

He thought he'd won, he'd got it made

The parents cried, the town had paid

One thing he wasn't counting on

Is kids don't like this kind of con

They whispered plans, and then - SURPRISE!

They tied his wrists and poked his eyes

Beat him soundly, beat him long

'Til they quite forgot that it was wrong

They don't mind it there, it's not so bad

Somehow they forgot how to feel sad

No one makes them take a bath

They hardly play; they never laugh

Absolutely no one cries

and no one ever, ever dies

+

Somewhere in a place called home

Their families gone, like ash or foam

There's no one now who was alive

When they all went on that fateful drive

Their hearts have shrivelled, eyes gone cold

But never grew up, and didn't get old

Their statue crumbled in the square

But none of them can even care

Once in a while, they look around

One of their number can't be found

Where could she be? Where has he gone?

They look, they shrug, and they move on

After many lifetimes in this place

The last two tinged, they're green of face

And what if now they find the knack?

They stumble Through, they wander Back?

Will they find their old selves again?

What will the townsfolk think of them?

Will these two remember joy or sorrow?

Stay tuned, we'll find out on the morrow...