Chapter 5
「Two Years Earlier」
Hoku knocked three times on the study door, holding a book against his chest.
"Come in."
Jiang Hao was still writing as Hoku entered. He finished a note in the margin, then calmly set his pen aside.
"I thought you might need this back," Hoku said, offering him the book. "I haven't quite finished it."
"There's no hurry. I won't be using it for my lectures for a while." His uncle removed his reading glasses and rested them on the open notebook. "How are you finding it?"
Hoku handed him the book without answering.
'I can't very well tell him it was dull. He chose it for me… But if I say I enjoyed it, he might find me another just like it.'
Hoku changed his position and answered in a sincere voice, "There were parts I liked, but, to be honest, I think I'd rather try a story next, though."
Jiang Hao tapped a finger on the corner of his desk and smiled ruefully.
"I ought to have asked before lending you something from my lectures. There's plenty of fiction in the library. Come and have a look."
He left the book beside his glasses and accompanied Hoku into the hall.
In the library, Jiang Hao switched on the lights. Hoku paused inside, surprised by the height of the ceiling. Shelves continued above the doorway, and the books covered walls much farther apart than those of the study. A dark wooden desk stood clear of the bookcases, with a lamp at one end.
His uncle brought him to one of the lower shelves and selected a book.
"Try this one. There are several writers in it, so you may find someone you'd like to read more of. The novels are on the other wall."
Hoku opened it at the contents. He read through the titles, then found the beginning of one of the stories while Jiang Hao moved a stack of books from the desk.
"You can read in here whenever you like," his uncle said. "Or take a few books to your room. I thought the use of the library might make a better birthday present than another book chosen by me."
"Thank you. Do you work in here as well? I wouldn't want to interrupt."
"I use the study. There's less to distract me there." Jiang Hao put the stack on a side table. "Leave whatever you're still reading on this desk. I'll know not to put it away."
Hoku examined the books on the opposite wall. From the hall, he had seen only the shelves facing the doorway; there were more on either side, with smaller books filling the spaces above the upright rows.
"I didn't realise you had so many."
"My last partner used to call this 'the eternal library.' I kept promising that the next bookcase would be the last."
Jiang Hao gave a quiet chuckle and collected a few papers from beside the lamp.
"Most of the books down here are reading copies. You can borrow them without waiting for me to come home. Leave the highest shelves to me, though. Some of those bindings are fragile."
Hoku looked at the worn cover in his hands.
"Should I keep this one in the room?"
"That one can go wherever you're comfortable reading it. I have an older edition on the shelf above."
Hoku returned to the story he had opened. He read the first few lines standing beside the desk, then checked its title in the contents.
His uncle switched on the lamp mounted on the wall.
"So, does it look promising, or would you like to try one of the novels?"
"I'd like to start with this one, thank you."
"Very well. I'll leave you to it." Jiang Hao gathered his papers and made his way back to the study.
Hoku sat at the dark wooden desk, opened the book beneath the lamp, and began to read.
. . .
Hoku set off after Cheshire, who was already a few paces ahead. The tulips grew close to the gravel, their broad leaves brushing his trousers as he held back the hem of his coat.
Cheshire whisked between the flowers to investigate a fallen petal. Hoku slowed, but the cat lingered over the spot and began washing one paw.
By the time Hoku had walked past, Cheshire was winding around his boots, ready to take the lead once more.
Hoku sighed and left him to his wandering, keeping to the gravel as it curved out of sight amongst the tulips. He let his coat hang open, enjoying the sunlight on his shoulders despite the cool breeze against his shirt.
After walking for some time, Hoku began to wish for something to drink. A cup of Earl Grey with orange peel and honey, left to cool beside a book, would have been welcome. Even imagining it made him more conscious of his thirst.
The glass he had emptied in the parlour seemed absurdly recent.
'Two hours? No, perhaps four…'
Farther ahead, a dark roof had appeared above the tulips. Hoku shaded his eyes against the light, and as more of the building came into view, he could distinguish a balcony along the upper storey and the columns of the porch below.
Hoku quickened his pace until he reached an iron gate.
The manor faced him across grounds filled with tulips. They grew over the approach almost to the porch steps, occupying the space where he remembered walking beside Polaris.
Around the gateposts, however, the flowers had withered. Blackened stems hung through the lower bars, with several dry heads drooped against the iron.
Hoku stopped with his hand on the latch.
'Have I come back as well? Polaris said he always found himself at the house… Perhaps he's still inside.'
Cheshire squeezed between the bars and continued across the grounds.
Brittle stems snapped against the iron as Hoku opened the gate. Flowers had grown over the gravel, though he could still make out the way to the front steps. Their wet leaves brushed against his coat as he went after the cat.
The front door stood ajar.
"Polaris?" Hoku called as he climbed the steps.
Cheshire slipped through the gap. Hoku pushed the door open a little wider and looked into the hall.
Patches of light shifted over the boards near the arch, as though branches were swaying outside a window. He waited for a reply, listening for movement elsewhere in the house.
The light at his feet dimmed. When he glanced back, he noticed a tulip bending beside the lowest step. Its head touched the stone, and several discoloured petals came away. More flowers were drooping beside the gravel, their leaves darkening as he watched.
Hoku stepped inside after Cheshire.
The board under his boot creaked and split before he could draw his foot back. He seized the doorframe, but the timber broke under his weight.
He landed hard on one knee. The hand he put down to steady himself sank into damp leaves, and his fingers closed around a root.
For a moment, he could do little more than remain bent forward. As he shifted his weight off his knee, the broken wood scraped across his other palm. He winced and loosened his grip, letting the piece fall into the leaves with blood smeared along its painted edge.
Hoku looked round for the doorstep.
A tree stood beside him, its roots running through the leaves on which he had fallen. Other trunks receded into the dimness. Pale light filtered through their bare branches, but he could see no part of the house.
Cheshire came to nose at the hem of his coat.
Hoku glanced over his shoulder once more, then steadily pushed himself to his feet.
The Memoir Chapter 4
Objective 3
Lost Section
The Memoir Chapter 4 End