"Rosebud," he whispered, then came back with, "I am the oracle." The commentary began as though blown by an invisible puff of breath where room is made for trees to grow. A tree in a concrete garden, caged, is a poor substitute for a forest. Royal eventide, velvet prince dots white ladies with the notes of music. Poplar doesn't mean an indiscriminant thing. Orange peel likes to know things, knows that Ess plus Seven equals Eight. The asters were the Ballard sisters by the names of Patricia and Marie, fathered by he whose name was Matthias, but of a different line. What was your reaction when you saw the picture? For although you didn't know, you should certainly have suspected. I could see you were hiding something behind your back. You told me it was just your hands. Slap of hands on a table indicates a card game. The rocks sat on the table that had been turned into a desk. From one rock sprang a magic fire; the other lay still. The metal tube also held fire inside, yet when one held it, it was cool. That is one of the big mysteries of life, along with, "why are there so many squirrels in the world?" and "why do camels drink pudding?" These are mysteries that may never be answered, but nevertheless these questions must be asked. And if there's one one word to explain anything, it's "silence."