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j makes a pint of lemon, honey and ginger smoothie after waking up all night with a scag in his throat

what shall we think of, g says repeatedly, mad keen to play 20Q.

what shall we think of

no-one can think of anything to think of. finally g thinks of a donkey.

are donkeys comforting? he wonders aloud.

can donkeys swim? we all think so, but no-one has ever seen a donkey swim.

are there any songs about donkeys? i google and say yes.

can donkeys climb? t says yes, they climb in morocco all over the mountains. but does it really count as climbing. (They're better at getting up than getting down.)

A mule isn't a donkey, I start to lecture. I know, says g, but now it's on question 25 and i just can't be bothered any more.

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My mind's still on the trees of Frome, so I decide to think of Aesculus flava (yellow buckeye). You don't see buckeyes around much in England, but someone sacrificed all their daylight to one on Locks Hill; synapse of peach-coloured leaves in the wind. It turns out that one of g's mates lives in that house.

The only tree in the 20Q machine's database is "christmas tree".

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who's that? ask him if he's had a drink since the party!

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liam got his face kicked in

g was a witness.

no i wasn't - I was just outside on the steps and i saw him come out of the dark all bloody.

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who said there were any regrets?

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it certainly does contain liquid!

john it's asking is it a mussel!

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We start work.