For the moment, I put this to one side. I entered the Student Union shop – which seemed relatively unscathed. The shop contained the usual university memorabilia: tee-shirts, trophies, commemorative plates etc. But I was not interested in those. At the back of the shop, sitting unloved on the shelves, was a pile of bedding sets: sheets and pillowcases. That’s what I needed. I collected two sheets emblazoned with the university crest and motto (“Postera Crescam Laude”) and took them outside to where Meryl lay. Collecting her remains into the sheets was not pleasant but it was done swiftly – as the sated zombies lounged about the scene of her death, looking on with what seemed like puzzlement. There was no time to bury her, of course, but I gently placed her remains inside a large wooden planter box which was otherwise vacant at the time. I mumbled a Hail Mary and an Our Father – no time for a whole decade of the rosary – and then covered the planter box with a few branches that I hastily pulled from some nearby garden bushes. That’s as near as I could get to a funeral for Meryl. (Afterwards, I remembered that she’d told me her father was a lay preacher in the Methodist church. Perhaps, I’d had this in the back of my mind at the time? Dunno.) After concluding the prayer, I sighed deeply and turned away from the planter box. There, standing before me, was my dear zombie brother, grinning happily, his stomach full of fresh meat. About his face was smeared the drying remains of our recently deceased classmate. A little gore hung from his (then) fashionably long hair. He seemed very pleased with his efforts. Without thinking, I slapped his face hard. He kept grinning. Then, he placed the back of his hand lightly on my own belly and emitted a satisfied groan. For just a moment, I felt a flash of warmth within my own, empty, stomach. I felt what he was feeling.
Y’n tor’ ma, my a worras hemma a-denewen. My a entras yn gwerthji an studhyoryon – o poran heb pystik, dell heveli. Yth esa y’n gwerthji ma an draow remembrans pennskol herwydh usadow: krysyow T, hanafow-piwas, platyow kovheans ha’n re erell. Byttegyns, ny’m deur anedha – ena po lemmyn. Yth esa yn delergh an gwerthji, owth esedha angerys war an estyll, bern lienyow gweli ha gorheryow-pluvogow. An re na o pyth esa edhomm anedha dhymm. My a guntellas dew lien gweli ha skrifys warnedhi “Postera Crescam Laude”, skochon ha lavar koth. My a’s dug yn-mes dhe le mayth esa a’y worwedh korf Meryl. Nyns o plesont dhe guntell hy gesyon mes y feu gwrys yn skav – ha’n zombis welghys esedhys a-dro dhe wel hy vernans, ow mires orthymm meur aga ankombrynsi, dell heveli. Nyns esa termyn lowr rag hy ynkleudhyas, heb mar, mes my a worras hy gesyon yn fedhel yn kist veur ha prennek (rag plansow), ken gwag y’n tor’na. My a gewsis yn unn hanas dew pysadow: an Pader ha’n Hayl ‘Varya – termyn vyth rag paderow dien – hag ena my a worheras an gist gans nebes skorrow a dennsen yn uskis dhiworth nebes pryskennow y’gan ogas. Ny yllyn ri ynkleudhyans gwir dhe Veryl. (A-wosa, my a borthas kov hi dhe dherivas dhymm bos hy thas pregowther leg y’n Eglos an Vethodysi. Martesen, y fia an derivadow ma yn keyn ow brys y’n tor’ na? Ny wonn.) Wosa konkludya an pysadow, my a hanasas yn town ha treylya dhe-ves. Ena, ow sevel a-dheragov vy, yth esa ow broder-zombi ker, ow grysla yn lowen, leun y las gans kig fresk. Yth esa drogurys a-dro dh’y fas remenant ow sygha a’gan sos marow a-gynsow. Yth esa keffrys nebes krow ow kregi dhiworth y vlew hir (hwath herwydh an gis ena). Yth heveli y vos pes da gans y wriansow. Heb ow prederi, y hwettis y fas kales. Ev a besya grysla. Ena, ev a worras yn fedhel keyn y leuv war ow glas ow honan ha gul hanasans gwelghys. Dres pols, my a omglywas lughesenn toemmder a-ji dhe’m glas gwag ow honan. My re omglywsa pyth omglywo eev.langbot langbot