Ah, the first day of school - yesterday started off a little slow; a lot of sitting around, waiting for things to happen - I expected a bigger frenzy, but it didn't really happen. All the familiar faces came streaming in, in no particular order, then there were the one or two conspicuous absences which made you realise just how central some people are to your nightly plans. Things suddenly took off anyway; the freight train can only sit in the station whistling for so long before something has to explode, and everything did - softly, anyway.

So here I am, at the real end of last night - this morning. It's quiet out, and last night is now another hazy blur in a long string of hazy blurs - there's a slight throbbing somewhere, but I can't quite place it; it's not a distressed throbbing, though, it's a happy throbbing, like the beating of a heart; the monster is alive again, and it's happy.

It's good to be back.