Pearl-Fishing; Choice Stories from Dickens' Household Words; First Series

Nephelo was a light-hearted subject of the Prince of Nimbus. It is he who often floats when the whole cloud is dark as a white vapor on the surface. For love of Cirrha he came down behind a team of rain-drops and leaped into the cistern of a handsome house at the west end of London.Nephelo found the water in the cistern greatly vexed at riotous behavior on the part of a large number of animalcules. He was told that Water-Drops had been compelled to come into that place after undergoing many hardships and had unavoidably brought with them germs of these annoying creatures. Time and place favoring nothing could hinder them from coming into life; the cistern was their cradle although many of them were already anything but babes. Hereupon Nephelo himself was dashed at by an ugly little fellow like a dragon; but an uglier little fellow who might be a small Saint George pounced at the dragon and the heart of the poor fairy was the scene of contest.