Pegasus, Lion, and Centaur

“In my dad’s fort are solid eccentrics,” chattered Anya, pulling Paulina by the sleeve. “Look over there! Do you see that modestly dressed old man, who is shoving pastries into his pockets and thinking that no one sees this? The largest diamond in the world belongs to him!” “Really not to the English queen?” Paulina was astonished. “No, she has the second or the third. Papa says this old man has the largest. And Dad also says that he hasn’t seen his diamond for about fifteen years. He’s afraid they would shadow him. Interesting, where does he hide it?”

Paulina looked thoughtfully at the old man who soiled his pockets with cream and was now wiping his hand clean in a hurry. “But if he’s so rich, why is he so shabby?” she asked. “Who told you that he’s rich?” Anya was surprised. “He’s practically a pauper. He hangs around forever as a guest. Yes, he has the largest diamond, but he has no money.” “But if he can’t even see his diamond, why doesn’t he sell it? At least to your father?” Paulina did not understand. “Really so hard to understand? Then he wouldn’t have the largest diamond in the world!” Anya laughed, dragging Paulina further.

“And there, that uncle with the goblet…” Anya whispered, pushing Paulina to the side, “smells the smell of money. Roubles, dollars, Euros, any paper money rustling. He can distinguish the smell of a hundred from the smell of a thousand. A one-rouble coin from a two-rouble coin! And all this, mind you, through a concrete wall! But only money! He can’t distinguish a fish from a rose by the smell! Well, to him they have no smell!”

Paulina looked with interest at the man who could not distinguish the smell of a rose from a fish. He smiled at her and dashingly, like a hussar, drank up the champagne. His Adam’s apple rolled along his neck. The goblet was empty. “Two hundred and two roubles and four kopecks! One of the notes is slightly torn. Should be more careful, girl!” he shouted to Paulina, nodding towards her right pocket.

Anya laughed and dragged Paulina further. “And do you see that tall woman there?” she continued to chatter. “Ask her what will be the value of any stock for next Friday, and if she makes a mistake even down to a kopeck, I’ll give you my shoes with rhinestones. Well, the ones you called ‘Turkish slippers’.”

Manoeuvring among the guests, the friends by chance turned up by the “enclosure.” “Anya!!! How are you!!! Come to us!” someone shouted. A quite young girl with rosy patches on her cheeks jumped out of the “enclosure” and with happy exclamation threw herself at Dolbushin’s daughter. With a speed difficult to expect from a man so solid, Dolbushin cracked from the waist up, roughly caught the girl by the neck with the handle of the umbrella, and threw her back inside the enclosure. “Tries to sneak up to my daughter again, shoot her!” he ordered the bodyguard. That one, not surprised, thrust his hand under his coat and extracted a small, toy-like and not-scary-looking crossbow. Anya gripped her father’s hand. “Only try! What’s the matter, Dad? It’s Ella!” “Was