A Slender Flame

I glided back inside from the street, settling onto the dark walnut coffee table where a fresh white taper candle stood upright in a brass dish. Rotating my marble plinth by tiny increments, I framed the slender column directly in the center of my inner coil. A match struck nearby, bringing a small, steady flame to life at the wick. Its warm amber glow cast fluttering ripples over my hammered ridges, sending a low thermal draft ascending right through my hollow chamber.