Nox did not sleep well that night.The torn page Mara had brought remained on the kitchen table, protected beneath a clean sheet of glass. Arjun had placed it there because Nox wanted to examine the handwriting again, though neither of them knew whether the words belonged to his past.By midnight, the boy had come downstairs three times.The first time, he asked whether the page could disappear overnight.The second time, he asked whether someone could forget writing something and still remember the feeling behind it.The third time, he stood silently in the kitchen until Arjun noticed him.“Come here,” Arjun said.Nox approached the table.“Do you want to talk?”“I want to know something.”“All right.”“If I discover that I was someone else before I came here, will I have to become that person again?”Arjun pulled out a chair.“No.”“How can you be sure?”“Because learning about your past doesn't mean you have to repeat it.”Nox sat down.“But what if that person made promises? What

The wooden tag stayed on the kitchen shelf for three days.Nox moved it twice.The first time, he placed it beside the yellow paper flower. The second time, he tucked it into the small wooden box Elias had repaired. Each time, he took it back out before anyone could ask why.On the fourth morning, Arjun found him sitting at the table with the tag in his palm.“Still thinking about it?” Arjun asked.Nox looked down at the worn letters. “I thought choosing my name would make the question go away.”“Did it?”“No.” Nox turned the tag over. “But it made the question feel different.”Arjun pulled out a chair. “How?”“Before, I thought I had to find the person who gave me my name. Now I want to know what I can do with it.”Arjun waited. He had learned that Nox often needed a little silence to find the words he was reaching for.“I want to help at the library,” Nox said. “Mara told me they’re fixing the children’s room. Some of the shelves are broken.”“That sounds like a good place to start.

The book arrived at the library in a paper bag.Nox noticed it because Mara set it apart from the morning’s donations. The cover was worn, the spine had been repaired with clear tape, and a faded label on the inside read: **Story Harbor**.“Is it one of ours?” Nox asked.“I’m not sure,” Mara said. “Someone left it at the desk before opening. No note, no name.”Nox looked at the cover. It was a collection of short stories, the kind with small drawings at the start of each chapter. He opened it carefully.A folded sheet slipped from the pages and landed on the table.Mara reached for it, then paused. “You can read it if you want. It was left with the book.”Nox unfolded the paper.*I borrowed this when I was little. I never finished it. I don’t remember who gave it to me, only that someone read the first story aloud. I found it while clearing a box. I thought it belonged here.*There was no signature.Nox read the note twice. “Maybe someone used to come here.”“Maybe,” Mara said. “But w

The argument began over a missing page.Nox noticed it while arranging the books in Story Harbor. A thin picture book lay open on the table, its pages held together by an old piece of thread. The story followed a young traveler searching for a place where the stars could be seen clearly.But halfway through, the numbers jumped from twelve to fourteen.“Someone tore out page thirteen,” Nox said.Sami looked over his shoulder. “Maybe it was the best page.”“Why would someone remove the best page?”“Maybe they wanted to keep it.”The little girl who had been listening shook her head. “Maybe it got damaged.”Nox examined the binding. The thread around that section was loose, but there were no fresh tears. The missing page had been removed a long time ago.Mara joined them. “That book has been in the library for years. We don't know its original condition.”“Can we find another copy?” Nox asked.“We can check the catalogue.”They searched the records, but the title appeared only once. Ther

Leena returned to the library three days later.This time, she carried a small photograph.Nox was arranging returned books when Mara called him over. Leena stood near the desk, holding the photograph by its edges.“I found this while looking through an old suitcase,” she said. “I thought you might want to see it.”Nox approached.The photograph showed two children standing beside a railway platform. The younger one held a blue cloth bag. The older child stood close, one hand resting on the younger one's shoulder.“Is that you?” Nox asked.Leena nodded.“And the boy?”“My brother Daniel.”Nox looked at the photograph again. The boy's face was slightly blurred, but the expression was unmistakably cheerful.“Do you remember when it was taken?”“Not the exact date. I think it was shortly before we were separated.”Mara brought a clean folder and placed the photograph inside a protective sleeve.“Would you like us to compare it with the photographs in our records?” she asked.Leena nodded