the glory and the gore

we guard our scars like trophies

bleeding hearts worn proud

glorifying psychological manipulation,

battles fought with words as weapons

a double sided sword

swung in the name of love

only weakens those we claim to protect,

because our hearts are not soldiers

drafted to fight in a war

our pride won't let us desert,

prolonging our own liberation

preying on our ignorance,

naivety is a nuclear weapon

disguising abuse as contingency plans,

because we can't see our own downfalls

through the thick smoke of gunfire