Day 4...prompt #Cryptozoologica

Cryptozoologica

Not gryphon phoenix fakecorn wolpertinge-

I speak to you about another creature,

small of brow and weak of arm.

I speak to you of the skinny shiver monkey.

I speak to you of the godimal, the clever beast

who's not as clever as it thinks

has never learned not to spoil where it sleeps,

has never learned moderation-

how not to gorge itself to stillness.

We in the department watch and learn-

the creatures too, ape themselves in glass,

laugh and cry, freeze and acrobat

I write notes in my cramped hand,

not used to their small instruments.

I paint them- great, red and terrible of shadow-

not how they seem, pacing in a cage,

skin squared with wires, but how they really are,

the haunters of our future selves;

neighbours in a mutual captivity