A cat, white as new-fallen snow,
slinks across the field,
past stalks of young buckwheat
and through the beanstalks
dans le jardin devant le porte.
It reaches the barn door and,
suddenly, it is no longer un chat.
Le lutin floats on the air.
Invisible, it passes through
the cracks in the wood.
Tiny hands form from nothing
and sink into the horse's tail.
Strands twist into plaits tout petit
woven by the bearded sprite.
His face splits into an impish grin.
The woman will be hard-pressed
to untangle the beast's hair tomorrow.
But this is the fee charged
by le lutin, to play among the
workhorses and cattle pour la nuit.
Au point du jour,
le lutin will sail on the breeze
and instruct the clouds to send
la pluie de printemps
and bless the soil with rain.
Image Description: A simple, wooden farmhouse in field. Dusk has settled over the landscape with orange, yellow, and purple sky along the horizon. The overhead sky is colored black, dark purple, and blue. Stars cover the sky and the milky way stretches across the night.
Credit: Zoltan Tasi / Unsplash via Webador
Laura Browne-Lambert is a queer, neurodivergent, and chronically ill writer whose writing emphasizes the characters, identities, and experiences she missed out on in her youth. She lives in Boston, MA and enjoys gardening, painting, and finding new science fiction or fantasy stories to enjoy. She is also the creator of the Underground Bookshelf. This project provides free short stories and literary resources with the intention of making diverse stories more accessible to everyone. Visit Underground Bookshelf at https://www.underground-bookshelf.com/.
Image Description: Laura Browne-Lambert, a disabled, White woman sits in front of a concrete wall on a sandy beach. She is wearing a blue, plaid shirt, black leather jacket, and black dress pants. Her hair is windswept. Her black cane leans against the concrete wall.
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