Ralph and the Pixie

‘It is beautiful!’ Theuli exclaimed. ‘But what is it?’

Without elaborating, Ralph said, ‘I thought that I should just follow my instincts for once as I made something. And . . .’ he made a theatrical gesture, ‘there it is!’

The object was about four inches high, and looked to be made of metal and transparent stones fused together. Its bottom was a tripod of delicate, graceful shapes like birds’ wings, and from bottom to top it resembled an intricate interweaving of such shapes.

Theuli, Pran, and Malina peered at it closely.

‘There is strong magic in it,’ Pran breathed. ‘But I do not understand . . . whatever magic it possesses . . . it is somehow closed to me.’

‘May I touch it?’ Theuli asked.

Ralph smiled. ‘Go right ahead. Maybe you can make sense of it. I sure can’t.’

Theuli reached out carefully, touched it lightly at first, then picked it up. And gasped in wonder.

‘It’s so light!’

‘I know,’ Ralph said, perplexed. ‘It should weigh a ton. I got this urge to go out to the stream and find bits of stones and crystals to put in with the molten metal. They should have burned, but they didn’t. Look, here . . . see? They’re fused right into the metal.’