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Phantastes, a Faerie Romance for Men and Women by George MacDonald
page 85 of 253 (33%)
above us, and swept through their stems around us; a great cloud
overspread the day, and a fierce tempest came on, in which I lost
sight of her. It lies heavy on my heart to this hour. At night,
ere I fall asleep, often, whatever I may be thinking about, I
suddenly hear her voice, crying out, "You have broken my globe;
my globe is broken; ah, my globe!"

Here I will mention one more strange thing; but whether this
peculiarity was owing to my shadow at all, I am not able to
assure myself. I came to a village, the inhabitants of which
could not at first sight be distinguished from the dwellers in
our land. They rather avoided than sought my company, though
they were very pleasant when I addressed them. But at last I
observed, that whenever I came within a certain distance of any
one of them, which distance, however, varied with different
individuals, the whole appearance of the person began to change;
and this change increased in degree as I approached. When I
receded to the former distance, the former appearance was
restored. The nature of the change was grotesque, following no
fixed rule. The nearest resemblance to it that I know, is the
distortion produced in your countenance when you look at it as
reflected in a concave or convex surface--say, either side of a
bright spoon. Of this phenomenon I first became aware in rather
a ludicrous way. My host's daughter was a very pleasant pretty
girl, who made herself more agreeable to me than most of those
about me. For some days my companion-shadow had been less
obtrusive than usual; and such was the reaction of spirits
occasioned by the simple mitigation of torment, that, although I
had cause enough besides to be gloomy, I felt light and
comparatively happy. My impression is, that she was quite aware
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