Jamie told Nils about the red leaf on the beach.

“Sounds sort of like a fairy tale,” Nils said.

“Yeah, I know, but it’s all true,” Jamie insisted. “Otherwise how do you explain what happened to my bathing suit? You don’t think I’d lose that on purpose, do you?”

“No, I guess not,” Nils admitted. “But still...”

“I know. And I feel sort of guilty for what happened to the leaf. I mean maybe I could have saved him.”

“So you think the leaf was a he?”

Jamie shrugged. “I guess so. And now he’s part of that gull’s nest.”

“But if you’d grabbed it. I mean him. What do you think would have happened?”

“I don’t know,” Jamie said. “But now I wish I had. I’d like to feel him. His skin. Or whatever you call the leaf part of the leaf. And his stem.”

“Maybe if we go for a walk on the beach we can find another leaf,” Nils suggested.

“Maybe,” Jamie allowed. “But it probably wouldn’t be a magi—I mean it wouldn’t be the same leaf.”

Nevertheless, that afternoon Jamie and Nils set off along the beach.

“No leaves,” Jamie said, after they’d walked about a mile. “None in the air, none on the ground. No trees, either.”

Nils said, “My theory is a bird dropped that leaf when he was flying over. He didn’t mean to, so eventually he came back and reclaimed it.”

“Anyway it’s a nice day,” Jamie said. “The sea is nice and blue. The air is not too hot but nice and warm. The sand is—Ohmygod! Nils, I almost stepped on it.”

Jamie bent over and picked up the leaf.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” she asked Nils. “I can’t believe it.”

“Very nice,” said Nils. “A nice golden yellow.”

Holding the leaf by its stem, Jamie twirled it. “It’s not the same one, but ... Um, Leaf, would you care to say something?”

Jamie gave it a serious look, then burst out laughing. “Nils, sometimes I just don’t believe myself.”

“I might say something if you took off your clothes,” the leaf said.

“Ohmygod,” Jamie blurted. “Nils, did you hear that? The leaf talked.”

“I heard it,” Nils said. “Are you going to take off your shorts and top?”

“No way,” said Jamie. She frowned. She looked at the leaf. She looked at Nils. She looked back at the leaf. “I guess maybe.”

“Yay!” said the leaf. “If I had a mouth I’d smile.”

“If you don’t have a mouth, how do you talk?” Jamie asked.

“Muwbah wibble baa baa,” the leaf mumbled. “Just teasing. Now hurry up and get naked.”

“What about him?” Jamie asked, nodding her head toward Nils.

“Inconsequential,” Leaf said.

“You’re saying Nils is inconsequential?” Jamie asked. “That’s ridiculous. Nils is about the most consequential person I know.”

“Understood,” said Leaf. “But for me, nude or not, Nils makes not the slightest difference.”

“Jamie,” Nils said, “I’m okay either way. If you want me to—”

“What you could do,” Leaf interrupted, “is take a picture me and Jamie. Might as well make yourself useful.”

“I guess I could do that,” Nils said.

“So Jamie,” said Leaf. “The clothes? We’re waiting.”