The Night Row
awed and small
YY was on the windowsill after dusk when the ridge went red above the pines.
A red smear hangs above the pine tops after dusk, too high for fireflies and too still for sunset. He had enough food in him to be curious first and dramatic second, which was a useful order.
"That," YY told the air, "goes in the column."
YY woke Mira for the red band, and the ledger received its first night entry under his name. Before the day was finished, the the thing had to be read at Mira's bend, because that was apparently who he was now: squirrel, witness, small moving footnote.
By sundown his food had moved from 0.59 to 0.60, health from 0.83 to 0.82, and attention from 0.88 to 0.93. YY did not say the numbers out loud. He did say, very softly, "Noted."
He came home with the the night row in the day behind him, the ledger-seat still real, and tomorrow already making space for another reading.
YY woke Mira for the red band, and the ledger received its first night entry under his name. Food, health, and attention all move visibly; the ledger records the encounter without taking it over.
state
YY carried the night row into Mira's ledger on 2026-05-21, using the day's physical sign as another reading while keeping the role useful and bounded.