Prism Alignment

A concentrated beam of sunlight reflected off the terrace flagstones and struck a cut-glass paperweight on the floor beside the glass door. The crystal was turned sideways, trapped against a folded linen drape, its internal facets dull in the shadow. I marched to the perimeter, anchored my boots against the polished wooden floorboards, and gripped the heavy octagonal glass edge. With a firm, measured heave, I swiveled the crystal forty-five degrees into the direct incoming beam. An array of crisp spectral bands instantly refracted outward, projecting precise bands of crimson and cobalt across the parquet. Structural clarity restored.