Trafika Europe 13 - Russian Ballet

Katia Kapovich

I look at Diana. Diana, like all girls, has her own deep emotional world, but I just know that, when she’s able to overcome it, she’ll come up with something cooler than mercury. “But with mercury – it’s a guaranteed death!” Mirsky will not give up. At that very moment, Miss Romana emerges out on the porch, carrying in her hands a tray with the promised chocolate milk, and a frothing bottle of steamed cream. She’s very kind, this Miss Romana, and doesn’t begrudge us anything. She lets us add as much sugar as we want to our chocolate milk, and doesn’t even bother to take away the bottle of cream. She leaves the entire bottle on the porch, and we take turns topping off our chocolates with large foamy hats. Mine’s the biggest of all. I’m trying to think, but the direction of my own thoughts isn’t very clear, even to me. I’m thinking for some reason about this father of Galileo’s who’s unknown to us: what DO we know about him? “Would you like some cream puffs?” Miss Romana asks, returning with a pack of them in her hands. I take one, nod mechanically, and continue thinking. All the others are also thinking, each about their own thing. “What’s with you today?” Miss Romana asks us, glancing in Luca’s direction. On any other day, we’d already be climbing the wall

150