A quartz of a different color!

[Treadwell]

A gift in a small wooden box arrives today at the meetinghouse, left there by a small cloud of blue-winged with whatever messenger there might be. The box itself is simple, about four inches square, with the royal seal of King Richard of New Hibera carved into the top. Instructions will be given to leave it on the Council table, which is, one would hope, where it ends up.

The box opens harmlessly enough, revealing at first a carefully folded page with the following note.

= = = = =
To the Myrken Wood acting Judiciar and ruling Council,
Greetings!

I present you this as a gift of gratitude and thankfulness for your consideration of a rather unique conundrum--namely, an alliance with a nation of fairies. Long may Myrken Wood stand!

From my palace in New Hibera,
This day the 28th of August, your A.R. 206
Richard Aengus
= = = = =

Under the letter will be found a carefully carved statue, approximately three inches in most directions. It is, when revealed, a life-sized copy of the fairy king, himself: a rounded amethyst sphere for a belly with similar, though flat-bottomed, amethyst "feet" attached to a wooden base. At the top, this body is joined by a rounded dome of pink rose quartz to represent the big bushy beard, with another, smaller sphere in place of Richard's head. Two silver disks sit atop an amethyst nose, a silver circlet rests atop the spherical head, and two butterfly-wing-shaped wings of the same pink quartz have been cut thin and magically fitted to the back of the round purple body. When pulled from the box, the whole statue will be revealed to glow with a dim pink, gently lighting the surrounding area.

All in all, it's a decorative piece--maybe a little gaudy, but certainly worth a bit, perhaps.