“Meditation,” I breathed it out and looked at Roman the way the girls did, giving a man the right to correct them in case…
However, Roman was watching Saturn at XII and me with interest, clearly not intending to interfere.
“Would you like to meditate with me?” the Master of the swamp hellcats did not give up.
“In the swamp?” flashed through my head.
“Don’t you like swamps?” I heard Roman’s voice in my mind.
“It depends on whose swamp and with whom to meditate,” I answered Roman, catching and immediately cutting myself off at the thought that…
“Sorry, I meditate alone only.”
Probably, Saturn would never have left Roman and me alone, if not for a flock of hellcats who flew up to the hero of the party for an autograph, while dreaming of moving to his swamps for a permanent residence.
“Were you able to forgive everyone?” Roman asked, bringing me back to yesterday’s task.
I knew exactly who he meant from the swamp in which we had met, however, since I had no desire to discuss my Past with Roman, I avoided answering.
“Are we talking about me now?”
For a moment, I even thought, “Why? Why don’t I want to chat with Roman about the Past, that he already knows, in part, being a witness to it? Maybe because the Past, that made us met, separated us as well, preventing me to approach him? Or because I suddenly, just for a moment, wished to see Roman in my Future? In the very one, which in 36 nights – or how many of them left? – doesn’t exist anymore!.. Stop all this nonsense!” I interrupted the flow of daring thoughts so as not to get lost in worthless fantasies.
“Didn’t you say yesterday,” Roman suddenly put his arm around my shoulder, pulling me to him and moving to a whisper, “that every person is Teacher and Student at the same time? In some way, you are certainly Master for me, but in some way, perhaps, my Student as well. No?”
The electric light came back as suddenly as it had gone away.
I pulled away from Roman abruptly.
The Guardian appeared from behind the black curtain and blew out the antique lantern, however, the candles on the guests’ tables kept burning for a long time.
“The next task is one of the easiest.”
Task No. 4. THANKSGIVING
…Remember at least 50 people who have influenced your destiny. They can be not only parents, but also writers, not only kind people, but those who offended you. The important is that thanks to these people some positive changes took place in you and / or your life.
Make a list of these people, and then mentally turn to everyone and thank, from the bottom of your heart, sincerely, even those who hurt you. They were sent to you from Above and exclusively for the good. However, sometimes it is possible to understand this only many years later. Or, how Sergey Yesenin wisely formulated, “You cannot see a face to face, you can see great things at a distance.”
The Guardian of the Portal approached me and defiantly rang the bell. The break was over. I went onto the stage and announced the Open Mic. The Cat materialized in Roman’s place.
***
“Why u not want I call u?”
“It’s night.”
“Want see u face. See u. No fly. Cancelled. I want u… Translation: I want to hug and kiss you everywhere… Want?”
“Stop, Pasha…”
“No! I want u! Many years u near I wanted… I saw u not can touch u. I like u much much much! U beautiful. But u distance! U not want?.. Yes or no?.. Tell me true! Tell u want so 2!”
“I am tired. I want to sleep.”
“I want 2 sleep with u! I want u much much much! Translation: I want you. Is it bad to say what you feel? Tell me what I’m wrong about?”
Chapter 5. UCATANAGON
I flew into the Mansion five minutes before the fixed time of our literary party, but the Blizzard was delaying the guests.
“Hello!” the Guardian, as usual, graciously relieved me of the snow-powdered furs and handed them over to the hanger. “Who are you going to introduce to the public today? The cryptic book title on the poster is a real charade! ‘Ucatanagon’, is it about some ‘Cat’? Or is it just something ‘gone’? Another Swampy? Baba Yaga? Or the skeleton of Koschey the Immortal?”
“You won’t believe the truth,” I whispered mysteriously as I walked into the cafe.
“One of the Rainbow?!” mirroring my whisper, the Guardian supposed and followed me to make us coffee.
“No, the Rainbow is still ahead of us! And here… how to explain… The annotation says, it’s like a mystical fantasy about options for the further development of mankind, ruled by Ucatanagon with a certain Ma… However, as you read along, you find the bear having non-standard love with the fox, and then killing it. The bull is engaged in even more unconventional relationship with…”
“S-stop-stop-stop! I see!” the Guardian laughed, handing me a double espresso with milk. “I figured out who the Ucatanagon is!”
“It seems to me that even the author himself didn’t understand who Ucatanagon was, but that doesn’t matter anymore.”
The hall was gradually flooded with guests.
“I look at them,” the Guardian said thoughtfully, “and I think, isn’t it the Ball of…? You know whom I mean…”
“The Ball is scheduled for the 40th night… Tell me, is the Portal located in the postbox room, where letters to the Creator are written?”
“I can’t answer that question,” the Guardian sighed with a shrug.
“I felt it there… Are there other rooms nearby?”
“Yes, there is one next to the postbox room.”
“Could you open it for me? For a couple of minutes, while the guests are gathering…”
We sailed into an adjoining room, where I slowly spun around the table. The walls were full of…
“Would you like me to make an exhibition of your paintings here?” the Guardian suddenly offered.
“How do you know I paint?”
“You gave me your ‘Moon Cat’, there is your painting on the cover, ‘The Girl and the Cat’. And inside the book, there are the same Girl and the Cat, already as drawings. You have a lot of works about the Girl and the Cat. They are very relevant here. So, do you want an exhibition?”
“I think it’s better to gift the rest of that serial paintings to the Mansion. Some have already been sold, some have been donated… I will bring you the paintings on the 40th night as my gift for the Museum. Yes?”
The Guardian didn’t answer. I thought about it, and suddenly, in the silence, I felt that…
“The Portal! Is it HERE?!” I exclaimed in surprise.
The Guardian smiled.
“Listen, it can’t be like that! I felt