Thorn and Fang

Oh-oh, do you hear the briar sing
Oh-oh, oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh, do you hear the briar sing
Better run, little hunter, run

You met me soft on the tavern road
A small brown wren you could hold in your hand
You saw a girl with a harp and a hymn
And you thought I was yours to command
But the forest that took me and called me its own
Sharpened me slow in the frost and the pine
Now the willow leans and the standing stones hum
And the wild in my blood is mine

So go on, reach for the wild
Go on, lay down your snare
The last one who tried to keep me
Is a tale that they tell to beware

The wild has teeth, the wild has teeth
You can love it, you can chase it, it was never yours to keep
I am thorn, I am fang, I am frost on the wind
The wild has teeth — and so do I
Oh-oh, and so do I

You've heard how it goes — how they hid the skin
How the wild one wept by the door
Well I read that tale and I burned the last page
I'm not grieving the sea anymore
The wren grows a talon, the lamb finds a tooth
The soft-spoken learn how to bite
So take back your rope and your ring and your cage
I was moonlight — now I'm the night

So go on, reach for the wild
Go on, lay down your snare
The last one who tried to keep me
Is a tale that they tell to beware

The wild has teeth, the wild has teeth
You can love it, you can chase it, it was never yours to keep
I am thorn, I am fang, I am frost on the wind
The wild has teeth — and so do I
Oh-oh, and so do I

The old gods woke and they knew my name
They gave me the thorn and the fang
I went in soft and I came out wild
With the whole green dark at my back
No, I'm not lost and I'm not tame
I'm not the prey tonight
Go tell it low by the firelight
The gentle thing learned to bite

The wild has teeth, the wild has teeth
You can love it, you can chase it, it was never yours to keep
I am thorn, I am fang, I am frost on the wind
The wild has teeth — and so do I
Oh-oh, and so do I

Oh-oh, do you hear the briar sing
Oh-oh, better run
Oh-oh, do you hear the briar sing
The wild has teeth — and so do I