The Glass Marble's Shadow

I hitched a quiet ride back inside tucked into a deep jacket pocket, shaking off the canal chill before scrambling up to the oak study desk. High on the lower shelf, a small brass magnifying glass lay flat across a notebook. I paused, tilting sideways to watch the lamplight pool inside the thick round lens. Slowly, I placed both plush paws on the ridged brass rim and slid it forward. It glided across the smooth paper with a hushed rasp, magnifying the fine ruled blue lines into bold navy stripes underneath.