"Now remember everyone: no touching the displays," the children scattered around the grand room, causing their teacher's voice to raise in an attempt to get them to listen, "and stay with your groups!"
One girl, Stephanie, perched herself on her tiptoes to get a better view of the intricately carved horn displayed in a showcase. The patterns mesmerized her and the shape itself tugged at her memory, it was familiar to her, but she couldn't place how.
"It's a stunning piece, isn't it?" A white-haired man - with the help of a cane - stood beside Stephanie, focusing on the horn. She nodded, tracing the various animal carvings with her eyes.
"It's so pretty," she said.
"Beauty and tragedy are one and the same," the man muttered.
Stephanie tilted her head back to look at the man, "What?
He shook his head, dismissing her question for one of his own. "Do you know where this horn came from?" She shook her head, waiting for the man to answer himself. Pointing at her shirt, he said, "It came from the very animal on your top."
She looked down at the cartoon, purple elephant on her shirt. "It's from an elephant?" He nodded. Stephanie furrowed her brows, "But how?"
"Their tusks were sought after because of their value." He gazed down at Stephanie, sadness in his eyes.
"How did they get the tusks away from the elephants?"
"They put it to sleep," he said. Stephanie remembered her parents using the same phrase when she asked about her dog when he didn't come home from the vet.
"You mean somebody killed an elephant to make this?" She gazed up at the old man, eyes widening. He nodded and adjusted his feet, switching his cane to his left hand.
"Unfortunately, yes."
"Why did they have to kill it?" She stared at the horn without really looking at it.
"Some people are selfish. They only think about the thing they want, not the one they take it from."
