Russell Hoban - Riddley Walker

Goodparley said, “Let me carry the fit up Riddley its me as put this woal thing on our backs.”

I said, “Its me as took it on with you.”

He said, “Dont you see it aint going to hevvy me down its going to hol me up.”

I let him take the fit up and I took his bundel. Here come the Bernt Arse pack then with the black leader. Goodparley said, “I aint ben this close to dogs this long time.”

I said, “You myswel get use to it theyre the onlyes hevvys weve got.”

He said, “I dint noatis them doing no hevvying in there jus a littl wyl back.”

I said, “I think they knowit bettern to get ther selfs trappt in there.” What I wer thinking tho it cud wel be them dogs wunt come in with Goodparley til hed paid some thing. They had ther oan progams.

We headit out of Fork Stoan going Norf. Goodparley said, “Where we going?”

I said, “You tol me Granser done healing and curing.”

He said, “Gransers dead.”

I said, “No he aint hes berning chard coal in the aulders acrost the rivver from Good Mercy. He tol me to tel you he wer Drop John the Foller Man.”

Goodparley dint say nothing to that he wer qwyet for a long time. Jus walking a long keaping nexy but not holding on to me. In the dark I cud see the clout roun his head moving he wer shaking his head and tsissing thru his teef. Finely he said, “O yes why not. Why not him a live and riding my hump. I stuck that knife in him and I run. Looks like I dint have it in me to finish him. May be I never had it in me to start my self nyther.”

I said, “No 1 never starts his self.”

He said, “Yes they do. You dont start the life in you thats like a rivver running in you stil there comes a time when you push your oan boat out in to the middl of it.”

I said, “Or you put your self on the road to the hart of the wud.”

He said, “How dyou spel that?”

I said, “W-u-d.”

He said, “You think this is the road to the hart of my wud? You think I put my self on it?”

I said, “Seams like it dunnit. Them as ben progammit to bring you down you let them run luce til they done it. Thinking on it now you musve knowit Orfing ben ready to try it 1 way or a nother.”

He said, “Yes its funny how youwl do. I dont think I ever beleavit I wer man a nuff for what I wer. For Pry Mincer. Time that yellerboy stoan come in to Fork Stoan being Goodparley wer a hevvyness I wer pernear ready to put down. I dint have my hart in it no mor. I cudnt keap thinking on all them things you have to keap thinking on if youre going to stay on top. Time Id put Orfing on the road to Cambry and Lissener headit the same I musve ben perwel ready to let it happen. After you gone to Cambry this morning I thunk on it and I knowit I bes have a nother look at things in Fork Stoan. Id lef hevvys there to help the qwirys on them other bloaks what ben beckoning that boat only I hadnt stoppit to see to it my self. Wel I shudve knowit them hevvys all ben in it to gether and Orfing ready to take over with them. I had Belnot Phist in my mynd poor littl bloak.”

I said, “I dont think he knowit nothing of it nor I dont think them Fork Stoan hevvys ben beckoning. Theywdve ben looking a woal lot sharper a long that shoar if they ben waiting on a boat with all the storm there ben that nite. May be that bloak in the boat bint even heading for Inland may be he jus ben blowt here.”

Goodparley said, “Wel may be. Any how it dont matter now. That yeller boy is luce now and ½ of it with us.”

I said, “All that what you said about the Punch show wer that jus to get the yellerboy stoan out of there?”

He said, “No it wernt. I wantit to hol on to it the same as you but what I said about the Punch show wer strait it jus happent youd put the 2 of them to gether.”

I said, “Theres a Power in it right a nuff look how it made the 2 of us get it a way from them others.”

Goodparley said, “O wel you cant help trying to shortin the odds longs youre a live but Im so tiret Riddley. Too many Drop Johns on me by now. After a wyl its all jus 1 girt big Littl Shyning Man nor you cant put him to gether. O them dretful Eusa faces. Wel Orfing he ben all ways fealing bad for them now heres his chance to make it right with them. Granser Drop Johning me and all. Wel why not. The old man never dyd nor the boy never be come a man. Every thing is stil where it wer may be when I grow up Iwl be Pry Mincer.”

On we gone roading thru the dark and rain roading for the aulders and the chard coal berning. In your mynd places be come the name of what happent in them. Like Iwd say in my mynd “befor Cambry” or “after Cambry” meaning befor or after what happent there. Thinking on the aulders it wer a jumbl of words and picters all mixt up. All kynds of diffrent things in it when I said “the aulders” in my head. Like what the Ardshipd said about his dead father: “I can feal him in me when its moving I can feal him in me when its stil.” Why that? May be becaws the aulders put me in mynd of seed of the berning and hart of the chyld. The berning chyld and the dead father may be its all 1 thing. And Goodparley trying all them long years to man for his self that wer part of it the same. With Granser and the bloody meat and boan.

So roading thru that rainy dark my mynd wer saying to its self: Now for the aulders. Saying the name of what wer going to be yet not knowing what itwd be. Jus saying that over and over: Now for the aulders.

We wernt doing no mor talking we sunk in to a sylents. It wer slow going Goodparley wernt up to much by then. Hed had like a hy after they blyndit him. Hy on stil being a live nor not being Pry Mincer no Mor. Hy in some kynd of way on being blyn. 1ce that begun to wear off he be come a plain woondit man slow and herting.

Time we come over the Bundel Downs it wer broad in the day. Stil raining it wer. Looking down from the hy groun in to the aulders you cud see in to the chard coal berners fents. Smoak and steam coming up in the rain from the harts and huts all huddelt they wer crouching in the wood like girt old shaggy wet naminals sleaping. The harts with roun backs and the huts with humps. Beyont them you cud see the rivver you cud hear it running hy in the col grey rainy morning.

I cud see a littl fire going unner a littl humpy roof on poals and a chard coal berner sqwatting by it with his back to us. He stood up and ternt roun it wer Granser. We come down off the hy groun to the fents it wer jus thin poals and flimsy for easy moving made in seckshins and peggit to gether it wernt much mor solid nor a fit up you cud pernearve kickt it down and dogs cud cernlyve got unner it easy a nuff. Coarse that dint make no diffrents to Granser. I wunnert if all them chard coal berners wer dog frendy. I stood at the gate and callt, “Trubba not.”

Gransers face come up over the top of the fents he had his neck stretcht out and looking at us hard. He said, “Is that who I think it is? Is that who I ben waiting for so long?”

Goodparley said, “You know it is you stinking crows meat and glad you are to see me brung down aint you.”

Granser opent to us the dogs dint try to come in they rathert keap on the out side of the fents. Granser throwing his arms roun Goodparley he wer hugging him and kissing him and muching over him he wer saying, “O my poor boy my poor poor boy my poor old boy.”

Goodparley said, “Yes you rottin old barset its your poor old boy and youre in joy of it aint you youre getting a hard on from it you filfy old thing why dint I do a parper job of it when I stuck that knife in you.”

Granser said, “Becaws you never wantit to kil me o no you dint want to do your old Granser dead you dint want to Drop John him you lovit your old Granser too much for that you wantit me to live. Which I knowit that and I knowit youwd come back to me 1 day my poor dear boy.”