I’ve seen elf women before, of course. Who hasn’t? But never one like this. She’s tall—probably more than two meters in bare feet (oh, what a thought ...)—about as tall as me. But she looks much taller, and it’s not just because of the silver-capped heels on her shoes. She’s thin and willowy and long and lithe, and she moves like quicksilver—fluid and effortless. Long, pale face with eyes that gleam like bright gold. Her hair’s fine and straight, so pale it could almost be white, and it falls free to just above her butt. She wears a biz-style jacket of severe cut—black velveteen over a synthsilk blouse of faintest jade-green. Her skirt’s the same fabric, calf-length, but slit up the side to just below the point of her hip.