Page 222 - The Grotesque Children's Book

Chapter 25.

Blue-red-green

Aurelio DeSolo stood underneath some of the frescos which Santi del Meglio had
painted. Aurelio was looking for patterns of blue-red-green, blue-red-green. “I am the Alpha,”
had said the girl in the story about the gold demon, or more precisely, “This is the Alpha of my
making symbols.” So Aurelio started looking there. There was, in the twenty-seventh bay from
the north, the fully-painted fresco of the illustration from Santi’s folio, there was the armless
gold demon, gloating at the girl who was wearing only her green scarf -- and sure enough, with
her right hand she was about to touch a blue banner which was hanging next to a red banner,
which was lying next to a green banner. Blue-red-green. Aurelio again summoned his
imaginary version of Tozzo in order to bandy back and forth some ideas about what they should
be looking for.

(Mechanicals cease their Prologue, and move stage scenery to reveal the humble artist’s room

which we have visited on a previous evening.)

Aurelio: So, Tozzo.

Tozzo: What’s that, Aurelio?

Aurelio: What do you see there, where she’s pointing?

Tozzo: Um. A row of banners. Blue red green, blue red green.

Aurelio: Ooh, but are they?

Tozzo: Are they what, banners? Well, no, they’re paintings of banners. They’re not real
banners.

Aurelio: No, I mean, are they blue-red-green, blue-red-green?

Tozzo: Sure, look. (Imaginary Tozzo points authoritatively with his fingers.) Starting with
the one she’s touching. Blue, red, green. Blue, red, green. Red, blue, red -- oh.

Aurelio: Red, blue, red...exactly. After two, there’s no pattern, is there?

Tozzo: That’s not good, is it?

Aurelio: Santi’s clearly telling us to look for the pattern blue-red-green, not just two
instances of it.

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