I, Proteus

The lesson was learned long ago:
You can't raise shields after foes pounce.
I grew to take another tact.
No shape-shifting, no lions nor snakes,
Though still tough to grasp as water.

Many mansions are in this house,
Whole neighborhoods and borroughs too.
By predicting and reacting,
I'll lead you where you want to go
And show you what you wish to see.

What I leave out you'll just ignore,
Convinced by your hypothesis
And that what's not there is hidden,
As opposed to not existing.
I know how you present yourself.

I'll tell you fundamental truths,
But couch them in ironic tone.
Then, outrageous inanities
I'll present with staunch conviction.
It's not my job to think for you.

Denigrating, deprecating,
I attack myself gleefully,
Knowing well that, though you might smirk,
A part of you believes my jests.
Who'd say such things if they weren't true?

Adaptive gestalt, mosaic,
I simply play with perspective.
Defense in depth, testing if you
Can see the forest for the trees.
In truth, it is quite plain to see.

For when words and actions diverge,
Follow not what I say, but do,
And then you will know all that is.
I remain whom I've always been.
I dance in light. I hide in sight.

I, Proteus