Summary

In Chapter Four: "On Love," Ade misunderstood Yule Ian’s name and called him Julian. Ade and Julian realized how little they knew about one another and spent several days alone getting to know one another. Julian got a bottle of ink and described that when people in Written had something important happen in their lives, they wrote that news on their arms. Julian suggested a temporary ink but Ade wanted the promise to be tattooed permanently. A half-year later, Ade was pregnant.

Julian and Ade were married and made a home for themselves in a small stone house on a hillside. When their daughter was born she had “skin the color of cedarwood and eyes like wheat” (176). They named her January for the god Janus. Julian interrupts his story to ask January’s forgiveness, but...