AURORA (Original Novel)

Chapter 15. The best new year in the world.

Day after day, almost until the new year, Aurora studied music under the sensitive guidance of an invisible comrade. With each new lesson it turned out better and better. Always at the end of lessons, Bielke felt overwhelmed and tired, and no wonder, because she was not away from the piano for almost ten hours. The mentor was demanding, although not at all strict. At home she did not eat anything, her only food was the unusual fruits that Lucius gave her, each of them evoked different emotions for a short time after consumption, it was strange, but entertaining. His words about his father being promoted turned out to be true. Now Phineas became a full partner in his company, and soon the financial situation improved. Finally, new and high-quality items appeared in the girl's wardrobe. It was unusual and strange for Aurora to go shopping with her parents and choose what she liked. The mother became sensitive and tender to her daughter, her appearance changed, the dark circles under her eyes disappeared, she began to smile more often.

The house shone with cleanliness and order. The parents were not at all interested in their daughter's new fun of disappearing in the barn for the whole day; they never even asked her about it. Lucius's strength was indeed great. Sometimes he told his ward stories from his past. For example, how he met Leonardo da Vinci or other prominent people in the chronology of mankind. When asked about himself, he always answered the same thing. "You're still small." Bielke was burning with curiosity and had a thousand questions, but did not demand answers, deciding that it was necessary; she greatly appreciated what the invisible friend had done for her and was very grateful to him. Lucius increasingly insisted that Aurora compose her own music and songs, and she did it well. Three days before the New Year, he announced that the girl should, among other things, learn English and dance, which slightly stunned his student. She didn't quite understand why she needed this. On the same day, the voice took on a clear form. Bielke ate fruits whose names she did not know. The blue flame in the clay pot flared up brighter and a girl with amber eyes came out from behind the piano; she was the same height and build as Bielke. Moreover, it was she, an exact copy of Aurora, smiling. The real girl almost choked on her food while looking at Lucius' new appearance. The twin said in a voice indistinguishable from Aurora's voice.

"How do I look? I had to prepare for a long time before I was able to create a perfect copy."

"It's creepy." Bielke whispered, the amber-eyed one laughed.

"It will be more convenient to learn dances in this form, and I'm tired of watching you turn your head in search of me." – The double made an inviting step, it made the girl laugh, it was unusual to see herself from the outside, to talk to herself. From that moment on, there were two Aurora in the barn at the same time, one had inhuman pupils and sometimes spoke like a hundred-year-old man, the other still remained an amazed and sweet child listening to the instructions of her twin. The training became more difficult, but Bielke was only happy about it. In addition to music lessons, dance and foreign language classes were added, for all this, Lucius cleared the center of the room and leveled the floor, installed a blackboard like in a school, on which he wrote notes with chalk. Every day he spoke more and more to the girl in English, thereby forcing her ears to adapt to someone else's speech. When teaching grammar, he did it with humor and acted out miniature scenes, sometimes using his magic and arranging illusions.

Information presented in this way was very easy to remember. Muscles and ligaments ached from stretching and dancing, only food from a mysterious place, from where a secret friend got it, relaxed the overworked limbs. The morning of December 31 came, before the New Year holiday, the old barn, smelling of hay, was filled with lights. Glowing moths circled under the roof, shimmering like garlands. There were no classes that day; on a hanger in the middle of the room, Bielke discovered a magnificent dress that seemed to be woven from real buds and petals of various flowers. Also, the girl's twin, with a serious look, handed her on a white chain, made of an incomprehensible material, a medallion, a raven's head with amber instead of eyes.