
"I'm certain she will allow you through."
"Would she?"
"She is not unreasonable. She'll let you through, but...always for a price."
Lucrezia stared, baffled. "But...what shall I bring her?"
What
does one bring the Guardian of the Glass? What does a lowly scout bring to the sentinel of the worlds? Of passageways that led to dreams, to nightmares, to worlds that had song, to worlds with strife?
"If you bring her a small crumb of light--a flash of falling light, like the tail of the comet, the sparkle of the dew, the flint from the lightning, or the wink of the firefly--she will let you through."
"Just one, then? A small bit of light?"
"Yes, angel of small things. Just a small bit of light, from the many you see around you."
"Just the one. One bit of light."