A Midwinter's Night's Scheme
Once upon a time there was a high school. This was no ordinary high school.
This high school just happened to have a pest problem. But these pests were actually
fairies. Now, some may call them nymphs, and some sprites (and a few of the
freshmen referred to them as poltergeists) but they considered themselves fairies.
Whenever there was love in the air of Athens High, you could be sure that Oberon and
his fairies were about.
Oberon was the king of the fairies and at this particular moment, they were in
an empty classroom, throwing things about and writing rude messages on the chalk
board.
"All fairies in my company!
Here attend and come to me!"
Oberon cried, and all the fairies stopped what they were doing to see what he had to
say.
"The yearly prom is here at last!
And plans of mischief we must make fast!"
His mouth split into an devilish grin. A drawling voice then spoke out behind him.
"Oh tricks on promsters bore me silly!
Boys in tuxes, dresses frilly!"
Puck made a disgusted face. This fairie just happened to be Oberon's very mischievous
right-hand-elf.
"We do this every year, my lord!
And frankly sir, I'm getting bored."
Oberon had just opened his mouth to protest, when he heard a sudden noise and
saw the door opening.
"Quick, Fairies, skip hence!"
In walked two Athenian High School youths, she named Brittany, a short, dark
pretty girl, he dubbed Luke Sanders. Oberon turned to Puck, who hadn't left when he
was suppose to, and hissed, "I'm invisible, just in case you wanted to know." He
walked over and sat invisibly between the two students.
"I know my father doesn't like you very much, Luke, but he'll never have to
know! We could each just tell our parents we are going to the prom early to finish
decorating, then meet up with each other."
"All right! Anything for you!"
They hugged, and Oberon, with elaborate casualness, looked politely away.
"How happy some or other some can be!" said a glum voice by the doorway.
There stood a tall, thin figure, with a tear stained face.
"Bethany, what's wrong?" Brittany hurried over to her childhood friend.
"You're so lucky," Bethany sighed dramatically. "The boys all love you! David
loves everything about you. He wants to go to the prom with you and not me. Oh,
Spite!"
"Who, David Meterius?" Brittany twisted her face. "I really don't like him!
You are worth so much more than someone like that! But don't worry! David will not
see me alone at the dance. Luke and I are going, and he won't be able to come with
me!"
Bethany's face perked up a little. "But I thought your father wouldn't let you
two go. Didn't he want you to go with David?"
"Walk with me, talk with me... I'll tell you of our plan." The three youths left,
all whispering madly.
Oberon sat thinking for a moment, and then suddenly, an idea popped into his
head.
"Puck, come out from hiding behind that chair."
Puck stood innocently.
"I have a mission for you, if you dare."
Puck nodded vigorously and bent his head closer, the better to hear.
"I have recently made a brand new potion
Which will indefinitely give out the notion
For the person who eats it to love
The first thing it sees, be it man or dove.
I'll put the potion on some mini quiche..."
"How are you gonna rhyme that one? Sheese!"
"You'll make the boy the tall, sad girl pines for,
Return her love true, and only her adore.
You'll know the boy by the black tux he wears,
But only use the potion if fate herself swears
That the girl will be the first thing he spies,
When once again he opens his eyes."
Puck nodded again and sat there with a huge smile on his face, staring at
Oberon.
"Well, go!"
Puck jerked to his feet.
"I go! I go! Look How I go!
Swifter than an arrow from an archer's bow!"
"Just go!"
******
That night, only two hours before the prom was set to begin, Puck, who had
been sitting in a basketball hoop for three hours (and occasionally blocking balls from
going through the hoop--after all, he is invisible), saw Brittany and Luke walk into the
gym, which was now bedecked in ribbons and streamers. Unfortunately, he didn't
know that they were Brittany and Luke.
"Why these two are here so early!
They must be the ones I look for, surely!"
Puck squinted his eyes, trying to get a better glimpse of the boy that was across the
room.
"Yes, I'm right! A tux he is wearing!
And yes.."
He put his hand to his ear.
"I'm pretty sure that's fate herself swearing
That the girl will be the first thing he sees.
Now how do I get him to eat this quiche, sheeze!"
Over on the other, less rhyming side of the gym, Luke and Brittany had met
each other, just as they had planned. Brittany, being part of the student council,
decided that since they were there anyway, they might as well put up a few decorations
like they had told their parents they were going to.
Luke heard a crash and a muffled scream, but didn't look up from the plate of
hors d'oeuvres he was eating. "Hello?" He turned around and saw Brittany had dropped
a large box of streamers, and was now throwing the tangled mess back into the box.
"I'm fine, thanks for asking," she huffed. She picked up the box and walked by him.
"I'm going to go get a different box," she fumed and shot Luke a sarcastic look. "Feel
free to eat all the food." And she stalked out of the room. Luke shrugged, and
continued to stuff everything eatable in front of him down his throat.
Puck, still gazing onto the scene from the basketball net, decided that this was
the perfect opportunity to get Luke to eat the mini quiche that Oberon had put the love
spell on. Puck hopped down, slipped quickly over to where Luke was, and threw a few
of the mini quiche onto his plate. Luke munched on, and ate everything except the mini
quiche.
Startled that his plan hadn't worked, Puck decided to put some more quiche
onto the plate. Luke looked down at the food, twisted his face in disgust, and pushed it
away from him. Now Puck was really getting frustrated because he wanted to get this
stupid job over with. So, when Luke opened his mouth into a huge yawn, Puck threw a
quiche at his face, and Luke chomped down on it in surprise. No sooner had he done
so, then he fell over and was snoring peacefully on the floor.
Puck smiled evilly. Suddenly, there were footsteps out in the hallway, and there
was no doubt in Puck's mind that they were the girl's. He quickly hid behind the table
and peered out from behind the punch bowl. But he was surprised to see the girl that
walked into the gym was not the first girl he had seen.
It was Bethany (but of course he didn't know her name because that is the whole
point of the story).
"Brittany?" Puck heard the new girl cry. "Brittany where are you? It's Bethany!
I've come early like you asked me to. Oh fine, don't answer me!" Bethany started to
walk hurriedly out of the room, but she tripped over Luke and was knocked to the
ground. "Move your feet!" she hissed at him. Suddenly she realized that her best
friend's boyfriend lying on the gym floor wasn't something that she saw every day and
started to jump to irrational conclusions about how he got down there. But the one she
decided was the most probable was, "He's dead! Oh my gosh, Luke! Are you dead?
Answer me!"
Luke sat up and peered at Bethany. He rubbed his eyes and opened them wider,
staring at her as if seeing her in a whole new light. " Oh Bethany! Goddess, nymph,
divine..."
Luke went on and on until Bethany finally cut him off. "Oh that's just really
mean, Luke Sanders! You're just playing a mean joke on me, aren't you? You know I
can't make David fall in love with me and you're making fun of me! Oh, Spite!" She
stormed off across the gym and out the far door.
"Wow! She's sooooo pretty!" Luke jumped up and ran after her.
Just then, Brittany walked into the gym with the new box of streamers and
noticed Luke wasn't there anymore. "Luke? Luke where'd you go? Where is he?" She
huffed, and walked back out the door, the opposite way of Luke and Bethany.
"Well, that didn't work out very well,"
Puck stood from behind the table.
"And there were too many girls, I could tell."
Then Puck heard yet another person coming down the hallway. Puck flew back
behind the table just as a tall, handsome boy walked in. And yes, I'll just tell you now.
It's David Metrius and he's wearing a tux.
"I know you're here, Brittany! Bethany can't keep her mouth shut worth beans!
Where are you?" He gazed around the room for a while. "You have to come back
sometime," he muttered and half-sat on the table next to the plate of mini quiche Luke
had refused to eat.
"Oh nice timing kid! I really needed that!
Why don't you make things worse, you great stupid prat?!
Now what am I suppose to do with you?
Are YOU the one that makes the tall girl blue?
Now I've got to find a way to make you eat the quiche!
But of course you won't..."
But before Puck could finish his ramblings, David looked down at the plate at his side
and said, "Cool. Mini quiche," popped one into his mouth, and was out cold before he
hit the floor.
"Well that was just too easy." Puck looked hopefully to the door (because he
noticed people kept walking in at just the right time) and sure enough, Bethany stormed
in, followed closely by Luke, who was still telling her how much he loved her.
"Luke! Cut it out! It's not funny!" Apparently, Bethany was still convinced
Luke was just messing with her head.
"But I love you!" he whined.
At this point, Bethany began to shout at Luke, but stopped abruptly when David
suddenly woke up. "What are you doing here?" Bethany looked curiously at him. "And
why is everyone lying on the floor?"
David stared at Bethany for a while, blinked a few times, and said, "Bethany!
Rare, perfect, celestial..." Then both the boys started to rave about how beautiful she
was at the same time, but instead of compliments, all Bethany heard was jeering.
"You guys are such jerks! Why can't you both stop teasing me and leave me
alone?" She started to cry.
"Look what you did! You made her cry!" Luke glared and David.
"I made her cry? You made her cry!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
"What is going on in here?!" Brittany had just entered the room. "Luke! There
you are! I've been looking all over for you!" She hurried over to Luke, who rolled his
eyes and groaned. "Bethany! What's wrong?" Brittany's eyes widened as she noticed
her friend was crying. "And what are you doing here, David?"
"Of all people you should know, Brittany!" Bethany wiped her nose furiously
with her hand. "You probably put them up to this! Some childhood friend you are!"
"What? Put them up to what?"
"You told them t-t-to tease me!" Bethany sputtered.
"I did no such thing! Luke, have you been teasing Bethany? You need to
stop..." Brittany lightly touched Luke's arm.
"Hey! I don't love you anymore, get off! I love Bethany!" Luke pulled himself
away from Brittany.
"W-what? You....don't love me anymore!" Tears started to fill her eyes.
"No! Duh! I love Bethany! You're too short!"
"I'm...too short? What kind of an excuse is that?!" Brittany began to sob and
ran from the room with her face in her hands.
"Finally! She's gone. Now, Bethany... about how beautiful you are..."
"You guys are unbelievable!" Bethany threw her hands into the air and ran out
of the door on the other side of the gym.
"Now look what you did! Just leave her alone!" David rounded on Luke.
"Why don't you just leave her alone?!"
"Because she likes me!"
"No, she likes me!"
"Do you want to take this outside?"
"Fine!"
"Bring it on!" David and Luke's noses were barely an inch apart as they
screamed all this, but since they were both secretly terrified by the other, they ran from
the room in opposite directions at the same time.
Now the gym was completely empty, except for Puck, of course. And a very
confused Puck he was.
"Well, that didn't go well at all.
And this problem ain't so small.
What will Oberon do when he gets word?
I better get outta here and fly like a bird!"
No sooner had Puck taken his first step then he ran into Oberon himself.
"I can see you did a bad job here.
My love-sick cure has slipped a gear!"
Oberon glared down at Puck.
"I'm going to make you fix this now,
And don't you dare throw a cow!"
"Actually, you're using the expression wrong. It's have a cow..."
"I don't care!
Now, I've made a new potion to fix this mess,
Which will make your job easier, with much less stress.
All you have to do is make the four kids eat shrimp.
And if you do this right, I won't make you a gimp!
Once they all sleep, to them it will seem,
That all tonight's happenings were only a dream.
You must whisper to each the name of the girl
They are to love. Now, go give it a whirl!"
And with that Oberon disappeared.
******
Puck went around the whole school looking for Luke, and when he finally
found him, he was sitting in a broom closet for no apparent reason. Puck slipped inside
unnoticed, and put a few of the magical shrimp next to him. Luke gazed down at the
shrimp with a look of curiosity on his face, but then, he looked as if he suddenly
understood what was going on.
"I know that you put those shrimp there, David!" Puck slapped his hand on his
forehead. "But you aren't going to fool me! You want me to eat the shrimp don't you!
Well, ha! I'm on to you! I know you want me to eat the shrimp, so I won't!" Luke sat
there, looking happy with himself. But then he started to fidget and began to look
worried. "But maybe you knew I would know you would want me to eat the shrimp.
So you just wanted me to want to eat the shrimp and not eat it so I would look like a
fool! So ha!" Then he stuffed one of the magical shrimp in his mouth and fell to the
ground.
Puck stood there for a second, staring at him. Then he rolled his eyes and bent
over him and screamed, "BRITTANY! BRITTANY! YOU LIKE BRITTNAY!!!" Then
he magicked Luke to the gym, where he was propped awkwardly on the bleachers.
It didn't take as long to find David, who was hiding out in an empty classroom.
Puck repeated the process of putting the shrimp next to him, and then he sat down and
started to get comfortable while waiting for David to convince himself to eat the
shrimp.
But just as Puck sat down, David looked over, said, "Cool. Shrimp," ate it, and
fell over.
"I should have seen that one coming." Puck was about to lean over and say
Bethany's name, when he had second thoughts. And yes, our rascal Puck let his soft
side take over. What he said instead was, "Choose the one you really love," and,
scowling at his own sappiness, transported him to the gym next to Luke.
Puck then found Brittany outside crying loudly. He found the opportunity to
throw a shrimp in her mouth when she let out a particularly large wail. She too fell
asleep and was put in the gym.
Puck looked on at the three sleeping figures.
"Here are three, come one more!
Two of both kinds makes up four!"
No sooner had he said this when Bethany came dragging her feet into the gym.
She looked up and saw her three friends sleeping. "Oh no, not the sleeping in the gym
thing again! Oh well. If you can't beat 'em..." She sat down next to David and fell
asleep.
******
"Oh my gosh, what are we doing here?" Brittany had just snapped open her
eyes and saw Luke was snoring on her shoulder.
"Ah! What? What?" Luke woke up and looked around stupidly.
"Why were we sleeping in the gym?" Bethany was rubbing her eyes and looking
at David, who had just woken up too.
"I have no clue," replied David. "But I had the weirdest dream!"
"Me too!" cried Luke. "I dreamed....um...I'm not completely sure... but we
were in a fight, Brittany, I know that."
"Then I'm glad it was only a dream!"
"Bethany, I just got this sudden and unexplainable urge to tell you that I am
madly in love with you and really want you to go to the prom with me. Will you?"
David blurted and turned very pink.
"Of course I will!" Bethany smiled.
"Speaking of the prom, what time is it?" Brittany looked slightly alarmed.
"12:58. Wait, a minuet! That can't be right!" Luke held his watch up to his ear.
"But it is! Look, that clock says it too!" Bethany pointed to the wall.
"You mean, we slept through the prom?" David looked shocked.
"I suppose so."
They all sat there for a moment, thinking.
"Well, want to go catch a late movie?" Luke asked casually.
"Sure," agreed everyone in imperfect unison. They all walked out of the gym and down the dark and deserted halls of the school.
"Wait a minute," Bethany grabbed David's arm. "Did you hear something?"
"No. It was probably the wind."
"I guess you're right..."
As the four Athenian High School youths walked out of the school together, an
elvish giggling echoing through the halls could be heard.
"Lord, what fools these mortals be!"