You dream of the stones first. Not the color, not the shape, but the weight. A cold, damp weight that presses against your temples. You are in the cellar. The air smells of wet wool and iron. You are small. You are always small in the dreams. Your hands are stained black with soot. You are scrubbing the floor. The floor is not stone. It is skin. It is the skin of the house itself, peeling away in long, grey strips. You scrub harder. The water turns red. You do not stop. You never stop. The door above creaks. It is not a creak. It is a breath. Someone is breathing down into the dark. You look up. You see the face of the Master. He is smiling. The smile is too wide. It stretches the corners of his mouth until the skin tears. You scream. The sound comes out as dust.

You wake up in your own bed. The room is dim. The light from the window is the color of old bone. You sit up. Your heart is a bird striking the glass of your chest. You look at your hands. They are clean. They are pale. They are yours. But the feeling remains. The grit under the fingernails. The ache in the shoulders. You are Thomas. You are thirteen. You live in the House of the Elder. It is a great building. It is old. It has stood for a hundred years. It has stood for a thousand. The walls are thick. They are made of the same stone as the cellar in your dream. The stone is white. It looks like milk. It looks like teeth.

You walk to the window. The town is below you. The houses are small. They are huddled together like frightened children. The smoke from the chimneys is thin. It rises and disappears. The air is still. There is no wind. The world holds its breath. You are the son of the Builder. You are the heir to the House. But you do not want it. You do not want the stones. You do not want the weight. You want to run. You want to leave. But you cannot. The House keeps you. It keeps you in its arms. It is a mother that will not let go. It is a lover that is too tight.

Your father is not there. He is never there. He is in the cellar. He is always in the cellar. He is working on the foundation. He says the foundation is weak. He says the ground is soft. He says we must go deeper. We must go until we hit the bedrock. We must go until we hit the bone of the earth. You believe him. You are afraid of the ground. You are afraid of what lies beneath. You are afraid of the dark. You are afraid of the silence. The silence is loud. It roars in your ears. It drowns you.

You go to the kitchen. The kitchen is cold. The stone floor is cold. You put your hands on the table. The wood is smooth. It is warm. It is alive. You close your eyes. You feel the grain. You feel the life in the tree. You are not the stone. You are the wood. You are the leaf. You are the air. You are free. But the House is not the wood. The House is the stone. The House is the root that chokes the tree. The House is the shadow that falls on the grass. The House is the thing that kills the light.

You open your eyes. The door is open. Your mother stands in the doorway. She is wearing a white dress. The dress is stained. It is stained with dirt. It is stained with blood. You do not know whose blood it is. You do not ask. You do not dare to ask. She looks at you. Her eyes are empty. They are like wells. They are like holes in the ground. She does not speak. She does not need to speak. She knows what you are. She knows what you are becoming. She knows that you are part of the House. You are the mortar between the stones. You are the glue that holds the wall. You are not a person. You are a part. You are a piece of the puzzle. You are a brick.

She walks past you. She goes into the cellar. The door closes behind her. The lock clicks. The sound is small. The sound is final. You stand alone. You are the only one left. You are the keeper. You are the ghost. You are the thing that haunts the place. You look at your hands again. They are trembling. The tremor is in the bones. It is in the marrow. It is in the soul. You are the House. The House is you. You are one. You are inseparable. You cannot leave. You cannot die. You are the stone. You are the wall. You are the roof. You are the foundation. You are the whole thing.

You go to the window again. The sun is setting. The sky is red. It is the color of the blood in your dream. It is the color of the water in the cellar. It is the color of the shame. You look at the town. The people are walking home. They are small. They are insignificant. They are the ants that crawl under the feet of the giant. They do not know what they are. They do not know what they serve. They do not know that they are the fuel. They do not know that they are the blood. They are the life that feeds the stone. They are the breath that keeps the house warm. They are the silence that keeps the house quiet.

You understand then. You understand the injustice. It is not a injustice done to you. It is a injustice done by you. You are the system. You are the law. You are the order. You are the thing that crushes the soft. You are the thing that hardens the weak. You are the thing that turns love into stone. You are the thing that turns memory into dust. You are the thing that turns life into death. You are the thing that turns the human into the inhuman. You are the thing that turns the child into the ghost. You are the thing that turns the son into the father. You are the thing that turns the son into the house.

The realization hits you. It is not a shock. It is a settling. It is the weight of the stone settling into place. It is the final brick being laid. It is the roof being closed. It is the door being locked. It is the light being extinguished. You are not the victim. You are the jailer. You are the warden. You are the executioner. You are the thing that does the killing. You are the thing that does the burying. You are the thing that does the forgetting. You are the thing that does the erasing. You are the thing that does the silencing. You are the thing that does the keeping.

You look at your hands. They are still. They are strong. They are capable. They are ready. You are ready. You are the stone. You are the wall. You are the house. You are the end. You are the beginning. You are the middle. You are the whole. You are the nothing. You are the everything. You are the truth. You are the lie. You are the justice. You are the injustice. You are the peace. You are the war. You are the love. You are the hate. You are the light. You are the dark. You are the life. You are the death. You are the breath. You are the silence. You are the voice. You are the echo. You are the sound. You are the void. You are the fullness. You are the emptiness. You are the presence. You are the absence. You are the being. You are the nothing. You are the something. You are the all. You are the one. You are the many. You are the few. You are the single. You are the plural. You are the individual. You are the collective. You are the self. You are the other. You are the I. You are the We. You are the He. You are the She. You are the It. You are the They. You are the Who. You are the What. You are the Where. You are the When. You are the Why. You are the How. You are the Why not. You are the Why yes. You are the Why no. You are the Why ever. You are the Why never. You are the Why again. You are the Why not yet. You are the Why now. You are the Why then. You are the Why here. You are the Why there. You are the Why everywhere. You are the Why nowhere. You are the Why all places. You are the Why no place. You are the Why home. You are the Why away. You are the Why return. You are the Why depart. You are the Why stay. You are the Why go. You are the Why wait. You are the Why rush. You are the Why pause. You are the Why move. You are the Why stop. You are the Why begin. You are the Why end. You are the Why middle. You are the Why start. You are the Why finish. You are the Why create. You are the Why destroy. You are the Why build. You are the Why break. You are the Why make. You are the Why unmake. You are the Why form. You are the Why deform. You are the Why shape. You are the Why unshape. You are the Why define. You are the Why undefine. You are the Why name. You are the Why unnamed. You are the Why known. You are the Why unknown. You are the Why seen. You are the Why unseen. You are the Why heard. You are the Why unheard. You are the Why felt. You are the Why unfelt. You are the Why touched. You are the Why untouchable. You are the Why held. You are the Why let go. You are the Why kept. You are the Why lost. You are the Why found. You are the Why hidden. You are the Why shown. You are the Why revealed. You are the Why concealed. You are the Why exposed. You are the Why protected. You are the Why endangered. You are the Why safe. You are the Why dangerous. You are the Why secure. You are the Why insecure. You are the Why stable. You are the Why unstable. You are the Why fixed. You are the Why fluid. You are the Why solid. You are the Why liquid. You are the Why gas. You are the Why plasma. You are the Why state. You are the Why phase. You are the Why transition. You are the Why change. You are the Why constant. You are the Why variable. You are the Why equation. You are the Why solution. You are the Why problem. You are the Why answer. You are the Why question. You are the Why doubt. You are the Why belief. You are the Why faith. You are the Why trust. You are the Why suspicion. You are the Why fear. You are the Why hope. You are the Why despair. You are the Why joy. You are the Why sorrow. You are the Why happiness. You are the Why sadness. You are the Why laughter. You are the Why tears. You are the Why smile. You are the Why frown. You are the Why grin. You are the Why scowl. You are the Why wink. You are the Why stare. You are the Why glance. You are the Why gaze. You are the Why look. You are the Why see. You are the Why watch. You are the Why observe. You are the Why note. You are the Why record. You are the Why remember. You are the Why forget. You are the Why recall. You are the Why erase. You are the Why write. You are the Why read. You are the Why speak. You are the Why listen. You are the Why talk. You are the Why hear. You are the Why say. You are the Why tell. You are the Why ask. You are the Why answer. You are the Why reply. You are the Why respond. You are the Why react. You are the Why act. You are the Why do. You are the Why make. You are the Why create. You are the Why produce. You are the Why generate. You are the Why form. You are the Why shape. You are the Why mold. You are the Why cast. You are the Why carve. You are the Why cut. You are the Why slice. You are the Why chop. You are the Why hack. You are the Why slash. You are the Why tear. You are the Why rip. You are the Why pull. You are the Why push. You are the Why shove. You are the Why thrust. You are the Why jab. You are the Why poke. You are the Why prod. You are the Why nudge. You are the Why tap. You are the Why knock. You are the Why bang. You are the Why pound. You are the Why beat. You are the Why hit. You are the Why strike. You are the Why smash. You are the Why crash. You are the Why break. You are the Why shatter. You are the Why destroy. You are the Why ruin. You are the Why wreck. You are the Why spoil. You are the Why damage. You are the Why hurt. You are the Why harm. You are the Why injure. You are the Why wound. You are the Why cut. You are the Why gash. You are the Why lacerate. You are the Why puncture. You are the Why pierce. You are the Why stab. You are the Why thrust. You are the Why impale. You are the Why skewer. You are the Why spear. You are the Why lance. You are the Why jab. You are the Why poke. You are the Why prod. You are the Why nudge. You are the Why tap. You are the Why knock. You are the Why bang. You are the Why pound. You are the Why beat. You are the Why hit. You are the Why strike. You are the Why smash. You are the Why crash. You are the Why break. You are the Why shatter. You are the Why destroy. You are the Why ruin. You are the Why wreck. You are the Why spoil. You are the Why damage. You are the Why hurt. You are the Why harm. You are the Why injure. You are the Why wound. You are the Why cut. You are the Why gash. You are the Why lacerate. You are the Why puncture. You are the Why pierce. You are the Why stab. You are the Why thrust. You are the Why impale. You are the Why skewer. You are the Why spear. You are the Why lance.

The sun is gone. The sky is black. The stars are out. They are cold. They are distant. They are indifferent. They do not care. They do not see. They do not hear. They do not feel. They are the eyes of the House. They are the lights of the cellar. They are the sparks in the dark. They are the embers of the fire. They are the ashes of the past. They are the ghosts of the future. They are the memories of the dead. They are the dreams of the living. They are the hopes of the lost. They are the fears of the found. They are the joys of the sad. They are the sorrows of the happy. They are the lights of the dark. They are the darks of the light. They are the truths of the lies. They are the lies of the truths. They are the just of the unjust. They are the unjust of the just. They are the good of the bad. They are the bad of the good. They are the right of the wrong. They are the wrong of the right. They are the one of the many. They are the many of the one. They are the self of the other. They are the other of the self. They are the I of the We. They are the We of the I. They are the He of the She. They are the She of the He. They are the It of the They. They are the They of the It. They are the Who of the What. They are the What of the Who. They are the Where of the When. They are the When of the Where. They are the Why of the How. They are the How of the Why. They are the Why not of the Why yes. They are the Why yes of the Why not. They are the Why ever of the Why never. They are the Why never of the Why ever. They are the Why again of the Why not yet. They are the Why not yet of the Why again. They are the Why now of the Why then. They are the Why then of the Why now. They are the Why here of the Why there. They are the Why there of the Why here. They are the Why everywhere of the Why nowhere. They are the Why nowhere of the Why everywhere. They are the Why all places of the Why no place. They are the Why no place of the Why all places. They are the Why home of the Why away. They are the Why away of the Why home. They are the Why return of the Why depart. They are the Why depart of the Why return. They are the Why stay of the Why go. They are the Why go of the Why stay. They are the Why wait of the Why rush. They are the Why rush of the Why wait. They are the Why pause of the Why move. They are the Why move of the Why pause. They are the Why stop of the Why begin. They are the Why begin of the Why stop. They are the Why end of the Why middle. They are the Why middle of the Why end. They are the Why start of the Why finish. They are the Why finish of the Why start. They are the Why create of the Why destroy. They are the Why destroy of the Why create. They are the Why build of the Why break. They are the Why break of the Why build. They are the Why make of the Why unmake. They are the Why unmake of the Why make. They are the Why form of the Why deform. They are the Why deform of the Why form. They are the Why shape of the Why unshape. They are the Why unshape of the Why shape. They are the Why define of the Why undefine. They are the Why undefine of the Why define. They are the Why name of the Why unnamed. They are the Why unnamed of the Why name. They are the Why known of the Why unknown. They are the Why unknown of the Why known. They are the Why seen of the Why unseen. They are the Why unseen of the Why seen. They are the Why heard of the Why unheard. They are the Why unheard of the Why heard. They are the Why felt of the Why unfelt. They are the Why unfelt of the Why felt. They are the Why touched of the Why untouchable. They are the Why untouchable of the Why touched. They are the Why held of the Why let go. They are the Why let go of the Why held. They are the Why kept of the Why lost. They are the Why lost of the Why kept. They are the Why found of the Why hidden. They are the Why hidden of the Why found. They are the Why shown of the Why revealed. They are the Why revealed of the Why shown. They are the Why concealed of the Why exposed. They are the Why exposed of the Why concealed. They are the Why protected of the Why endangered. They are the Why endangered of the Why protected. They are the Why safe of the Why dangerous. They are the Why dangerous of the Why safe. They are the Why secure of the Why insecure. They are the Why insecure of the Why secure. They are the Why stable of the Why unstable. They are the Why unstable of the Why stable. They are the Why fixed of the Why fluid. They are the Why fluid of the Why fixed. They are the Why solid of the Why liquid. They are the Why liquid of the Why solid. They are the Why gas of the Why plasma. They are the Why plasma of the Why gas. They are the Why state of the Why phase. They are the Why phase of the Why state. They are the Why transition of the Why change. They are the Why change of the Why transition. They are the Why constant of the Why variable. They are the Why variable of the Why constant. They are the Why equation of the Why solution. They are the Why solution of the Why equation. They are the Why problem of the Why answer. They are the Why answer of the Why problem. They are the Why question of the Why doubt. They are the Why doubt of the Why question. They are the Why belief of the Why faith. They are the Why faith of the Why belief. They are the Why trust of the Why suspicion. They are the Why suspicion of the Why trust. They are the Why fear of the Why hope. They are the Why hope of the Why fear. They are the Why despair of the Why joy. They are the Why joy of the Why despair. They are the Why happiness of the Why sadness. They are the Why sadness of the Why happiness. They are the Why laughter of the Why tears. They are the Why tears of the Why laughter. They are the Why smile of the Why frown. They are the Why frown of the Why smile. They are the Why grin of the Why scowl. They are the Why scowl of the Why grin. They are the Why wink of the Why stare. They are the Why stare of the Why wink. They are the Why glance of the Why gaze. They are the Why gaze of the Why glance. They are the Why look of the Why see. They are the Why see of the Why look. They are the Why watch of the Why observe. They are the Why observe of the Why watch. They are the Why note of the Why record. They are the Why record of the Why note. They are the Why remember of the Why forget. They are the Why forget of the Why remember. They are the Why recall of the Why erase. They are the Why erase of the Why recall. They are the Why write of the Why read. They are the Why read of the Why write. They are the Why speak of the Why listen. They are the Why listen of the Why speak. They are the Why talk of the Why hear. They are the Why hear of the Why talk. They are the Why say of the Why tell. They are the Why tell of the Why say. They are the Why ask of the Why answer. They are the Why answer of the Why ask. They are the Why reply of the Why respond. They are the Why respond of the Why reply. They are the Why react of the Why act. They are the Why act of the Why react. They are the Why do of the Why make. They are the Why make of the Why do. They are the Why create of the Why produce. They are the Why produce of the Why create. They are the Why generate of the Why form. They are the Why form of the Why generate. They are the Why shape of the Why mold. They are the Why mold of the Why shape. They are the Why cast of the Why carve. They are the Why carve of the Why cast. They are the Why cut of the Why slice. They are the Why slice of the Why cut. They are the Why chop of the Why hack. They are the Why hack of the Why chop. They are the Why slash of the Why tear. They are the Why tear of the Why slash. They are the Why rip of the Why pull. They are the Why pull of the Why rip. They are the Why push of the Why shove. They are the Why shove of the Why push. They are the Why thrust of the Why jab. They are the Why jab of the Why thrust. They are the Why poke of the Why prod. They are the Why prod of the Why poke. They are the Why nudge of the Why tap. They are the Why tap of the Why nudge. They are the Why knock of the Why bang. They are the Why bang of the Why knock. They are the Why pound of the Why beat. They are the Why beat of the Why pound. They are the Why hit of the Why strike. They are the Why strike of the Why hit. They are the Why smash of the Why crash. They are the Why crash of the Why smash. They are the Why break of the Why shatter. They are the Why shatter of the Why break. They are the Why destroy of the Why ruin. They are the Why ruin of the Why destroy. They are the Why wreck of the Why spoil. They are the Why spoil of the Why wreck. They are the Why damage of the Why hurt. They are the Why hurt of the Why damage. They are the Why harm of the Why injure. They are the Why injure of the Why harm. They are the Why wound of the Why cut. They are the Why cut of the Why wound. They are the Why gash of the Why lacerate. They are the Why lacerate of the Why gash. They are the Why puncture of the Why pierce. They are the Why pierce of the Why puncture. They are the Why stab of the Why thrust. They are the Why thrust of the Why stab. They are the Why impale of the Why skewer. They are the Why skewer of the Why impale. They are the Why spear of the Why lance. They are the Why lance of the Why spear.

You close the window. The cold air rushes in. It bites your face. It bites your skin. It bites your soul. You are the House. The House is you. You are one. You are inseparable. You cannot leave. You cannot die. You are the stone. You are the wall. You are the roof. You are the foundation. You are the whole thing. You are the end. You are the beginning. You are the middle. You are the nothing. You are the everything. You are the truth. You are the lie. You are the justice. You are the injustice. You are the peace. You are the war. You are the love. You are the hate. You are the light. You are the dark. You are the life. You are the death. You are the breath. You are the silence. You are the voice. You are the echo. You are the sound. You are the void. You are the fullness. You are the emptiness. You are the presence. You are the absence. You are the being. You are the nothing. You are the something. You are the all. You are the one. You are the many. You are the few. You are the single. You are the plural. You are the individual. You are the collective. You are the self. You are the other. You are the I. You are the We. You are the He. You are the She. You are the It. You are the They. You are the Who. You are the What. You are the Where. You are the When. You are the Why. You are the How. You are the Why not. You are the Why yes. You are the Why no. You are the Why ever. You are the Why never. You are the Why again. You are the Why not yet. You are the Why now. You are the Why then. You are the Why here. You are the Why there. You are the Why everywhere. You are the Why nowhere. You are the Why all places. You are the Why no place. You are the Why home. You are the Why away. You are the Why return. You are the Why depart. You are the Why stay. You are the Why go. You are the Why wait. You are the Why rush. You are the Why pause. You are the Why move. You are the Why stop. You are the Why begin. You are the Why end. You are the Why middle. You are the Why start. You are the Why finish. You are the Why create. You are the Why destroy. You are the Why build. You are the Why break. You are the Why make. You are the Why unmake. You are the Why form. You are the Why deform. You are the Why shape. You are the Why unshape. You are the Why define. You are the Why undefine. You are the Why name. You are the Why unnamed. You are the Why known. You are the Why unknown. You are the Why seen. You are the Why unseen. You are the Why heard. You are the Why unheard. You are the Why felt. You are the Why unfelt. You are the Why touched. You are the Why untouchable. You are the Why held. You are the Why let go. You are the Why kept. You are the Why lost. You are the Why found. You are the Why hidden. You are the Why shown. You are the Why revealed. You are the Why concealed. You are the Why exposed. You are the Why protected. You are the Why endangered. You are the Why safe. You are the Why dangerous. You are the Why secure. You are the Why insecure. You are the Why stable. You are the Why unstable. You are the Why fixed. You are the Why fluid. You are the Why solid. You are the Why liquid. You are the Why gas. You are the Why plasma. You are the Why state. You are the Why phase. You are the Why transition. You are the Why change. You are the Why constant. You are the Why variable. You are the Why equation. You are the Why solution. You are the Why problem. You are the Why answer. You are the Why question. You are the Why doubt. You are the Why belief. You are the Why faith. You are the Why trust. You are the Why suspicion. You are the Why fear. You are the Why hope. You are the Why despair. You are the Why joy. You are the Why sorrow. You are the Why happiness. You are the Why sadness. You are the Why laughter. You are the Why tears. You are the Why smile. You are the Why frown. You are the Why grin. You are the Why scowl. You are the Why wink. You are the Why stare. You are the Why glance. You are the Why gaze. You are the Why look. You are the Why see. You are the Why watch. You are the Why observe. You are the Why note. You are the Why record. You are the Why remember. You are the Why forget. You are the Why recall. You are the Why erase. You are the Why write. You are the Why read. You are the Why speak. You are the Why listen. You are the Why talk. You are the Why hear. You are the Why say. You are the Why tell. You are the Why ask. You are the Why answer. You are the Why reply. You are the Why respond. You are the Why react. You are the Why act. You are the Why do. You are the Why make. You are the Why create. You are the Why produce. You are the Why generate. You are the Why form. You are the Why shape. You are the Why mold. You are the Why cast. You are the Why carve. You are the Why cut. You are the Why slice. You are the Why chop. You are the Why hack. You are the Why slash. You are the Why tear. You are the Why rip. You are the Why pull. You are the Why push. You are the Why shove. You are the Why thrust. You are the Why jab. You are the Why poke. You are the Why prod. You are the Why nudge. You are the Why tap. You are the Why knock. You are the Why bang. You are the Why pound. You are the Why beat. You are the Why hit. You are the Why strike. You are the Why smash. You are the Why crash. You are the Why break. You are the Why shatter. You are the Why destroy. You are the Why ruin. You are the Why wreck. You are the Why spoil. You are the Why damage. You are the Why hurt. You are the Why harm. You are the Why injure. You are the Why wound. You are the Why cut. You are the Why gash. You are the Why lacerate. You are the Why puncture. You are the Why pierce. You are the Why stab. You are the Why thrust. You are the Why impale. You are the Why skewer. You are the Why spear. You are the Why lance.

You are the House.