sudoku.

i speak puzzle languages

i used to play solitaire

but sometimes there is no solution

no more moves left

so i moved on to sudoku

every number has its rightful throne

every digit fits neatly and perfectly

and there are no repeats

not a single one

for those who did not know how to play,

that was there failure,

their inability to reimagine the

numerals as monarchs,

the boxes as cells,

and themselves as the rioters

i was going to stay home that day

but going out was a gamble i loved to play

besides,

i always had sudoku

so i stayed at the gathering

asked people what they loved to play

no one said anything

just stood with cloak-covered heads

and chains around their necks

so then i played sudoku

each number has a character

i especially like one and nine

they don't have cloaks or chains

one is a queen who loftily isolates herself

but sews together the stitches of

poverty and calls herself a savior

nine is a king who grants his opponents

the right to die

and brings them hemlock disguised as wine

i locked them away in the center of the puzzle

they shrieked and pleaded with me,

they did not recognize me

one was my friend

nine was my friend, too

but both of them played solitaire

i showed them what it was like to play sudoku

and now they lie in the center,

the rioters' effigy,

and my dearest friends beg for their heads in the well

we play sudoku

and we win

every time.