HOW DO YOU BEAT DÉJÀ VU,
CHAPTER SEVEN
A/N: Just a quick note thanking my readers for their kind reviews. I'm borrowing a little from a famous tale, which I don't own, by the way. Another author's note appears at the end.
Please read and review, thanks very much!
Previously: Mike put her bottle back on the table as he gestured with his left hand. "That's a very interesting question," he said, "but I have a better one. Maybe you should be asking 'what am I'?"
"Wh—wh...?" She started stammering.
Jeannie knew that he didn't feel like another genie, or if he was, he was able to conceal it, like the Blue Djinn had when she'd first met him. But, if he wasn't a genie, what was he, and why hadn't she sensed him when they'd first met?
He materialized beside her and, a chuckle escaping his full lips, kissed her tenderly. Jeannie felt a sense of clarification just then, as she realized who Mike MacAllister truly was. Bounding up from the couch, she stood in front of him, her eyes damning him.
"You lied to me!" She shouted.
Mike was instantly contrite. He hated lying, especially to one as beautiful as the woman before him. Perhaps, he decided, she would respond to his generosity. Not only that, but not telling the truth had gotten him in trouble before, particularly with his mother. He wondered how Jeannie would respond when he found out that the house actually belonged to Aphrodite.
"You're right," he apologized. "I did fib. But I did it for a good reason, really!"
He reached out to touch her again as he had on the couch, but Jeannie blinked herself away. Mike followed her to the roof where she was.
"Come now, my sweet one," he cooed. "You would exhaust your powers long before I ever could."
"I do not understand you!" Jeannie shouted. She blinked herself to his garden. Mike materialized beside her.
"No, most beings don't," he said, sighing. "Very well, I will confess. You know that we often play at being mortals, do you not?"
"Yes," Jeannie responded.
"I've been Mike MacAllister, store manager before," Mike said simply. "I've also been others throughout the centuries."
Walking by the fountain, Jeannie considered her reply. She didn't want to upset a deity like Mike and risk his spewing his vengeance on her or her master.
"It should be easy for the God of Love," she replied.
Suddenly, Mike glowed with an unearthly white light. His clothes disappeared, revealing his Grecian attire, which consisted of cloth that was not quite white and not quite gold, but a blending of the two. It covered all of his majestic form, except for the left side of his well-defined, hairless chest. The hair on his head remained the same color, as did his eyes, but inside of the grey was a red fire that had not been there before. On his back was a golden pouch, and inside were arrows of two hues, gold and pewter, the latter actually being lead.
His voice dripping with contempt, Mike told her, "You figure you know all about it, do you? You wish to know what it's like being me? It's depressing, never having what you want most, watching while everyone else achieves his or her heart's desire, while I sit back and suffer!"
Jeannie couldn't help feeling sorry for Mike, aka Eros. "What is it that you want?" She asked, extremely interested in his answer.
He gave her a look that said, "duh" but responded, "I want what any being wants in the grand scheme of things: someone to love, throughout all eternity!"
Jeannie could relate. She'd often thought about, though she'd never tell her master, what would happen when Major Nelson got old and feeble. Could she live with that day when it came? What would she do when he finally died? As a rule, genies could live for centuries, not forever like a god could, but they could still exist for thousands of years. Jeannie knew that she would never find another human like Tony Nelson; she had looked, after all, even when she wasn't certain what or who she had been looking for. Mike (for Jeannie didn't really think of him as Cupid or Eros,) looked at her with sympathy and comprehension.
"I see that you have a similar problem," he said.
"Why did you not hit him with one of those?" She queried, pointing to his golden arrows.
"Major Nelson?" Cupid asked, shrugging. He changed back into his human guise (for it could be blinding to look upon him for too long, even for a genie,) and shrugged.
"Who says I didn't?" He asked, then he smirked at Jeannie, saying, "and let me tell you that hitting him with something is some of the hardest work I have ever done! I had to get one specially made for him, a size nine, in fact!"
Jeannie was confused. "I am afraid I do not understand," she said.
"You think that the game of golf, where you use different types of clubs, was invented by humans?" Mike asked her. "Not so, little genie. We were playing that on Mount Olympus untold centuries ago. The human cartoons and TV shows have gotten it all wrong. I've never used a hammer on a mortal in all of my eternal life! That would be too harsh. So, for the ones who are too tough to touch with an arrow, I use a golf club: Number One club increasing in strength up to Number Nine club, to affect the heart and loins of a human. Guess which one he rated?"
"Oh, I see!" Jeannie cried. "You use different strengths for different types of people. If they are prone to fall in love, you only need a low number, and if they have trouble falling in love, you use a higher number!"
He smiled at her, saying, "Correct. For some reason, maybe sheer will and determination, Tony Nelson seemed nearly impenetrable. Then I found a sensitive spot, one where, if I used the strongest club, I could get in."
Jeannie wondered who her master truly loved. She still didn't believe that he loved her; he'd never said the words aloud, and she also knew that, even if he did care for her on some level, he would never marry her. His logical side wouldn't permit it. She didn't ask Eros to aid her, however. The god's eyes glowed a hotter red as he took her hands in his.
"Let's not talk about him anymore, shall we, when we can discuss the real reason for my visit to Cocoa Beach…" he began, taking her hands and massaging them. When she was aware of his ministrations, Jeannie tugged her hands away.
"Stop that!" She ordered, but then she looked apologetic when she caught his glare.
"You forget that in addition to being the son of Venus, I am also the spawn of Mars," he reminded her. When Jeannie looked as though she'd run away again, Eros said, "Please, let's not fight. You will like what I am about to tell you."
Jeannie knew already that she wouldn't like what Mike, or Cupid, had to say. She knew how fickle gods could be. They were worse than she was! Her eyes fell on the birds in his fountain as she was unsure of what to tell him. Her powers were useless against him, so what could she do?
"I know what you're thinking, at least in part," he said. "You wonder how you will escape my plans, eh? Truth is: you can't, as you well know."
The magic girl waited for more information. She could guess part of why he was here, but she didn't exactly know why he'd sought her in his guise as a store manager. She wasn't going to be in the dark for long when Cupid continued.
Flashing her a triumphant grin, he told her, "As I said, I think you will be elated when I tell you that I wish for you to be as I am: a Goddess."
Jeannie turned around at that. "What?" She asked, not wanting to believe him.
Cupid smirked, saying, "You see, a long time ago, I fell for a mortal woman, Psyche." He walked around his fountain, running his finger along its base as he told the tale.
"To say that my mother was not pleased was something of an understatement," he told Jeannie. "She is very jealous, you see. Through a series of misadventures, I fell for Psyche and my mother wanted to punish her, because other humans warmed to our story more than they wanted to worship my mother. So, she cursed her before I had a chance to undo the damage. Aphrodite sent her to serve in my father's temple for all eternity as a lower demon. While my father is allowed in man's world and on Mount Olympus, I am not allowed to travel to the lower depths where he reigns. If I venture there, I lose my power, and I would not be able to get back to where I dwell in the clouds."
Jeannie again understood. If she were parted forever from the man she loved, she would be searching for another that was her match, too, (not that she would be able to find anyone like that). But, she now had a serious problem: the man…or rather, god before her wanted her to be his. She had to discourage him, somehow.
"I appreciate that you wish to change me, but I do not wish to be changed," Jeannie protested.
Eros frowned, saying, "I know what you think. You believe Mother will interfere. But, she will not. Forget the man Anthony Nelson. I can give you more than he ever could! I know your pain, little genie. I saw you, quite recently, in fact. I saw you when he rescued you from your bottle; I saw all those times that you tried to get him to marry you and he rejected you. I heard your inner cries, and I am here to answer them."
He reached into his bag of arrows, withdrawing a golden one with a small number nine etched on the pointed part. Aiming it at her, he said, "It would be so easy, you know. One shot with this, and I could make you fall so in love with me that you would do anything I want."
Jeannie could argue with him, but she knew that would be a useless battle. She hesitated, but realizing the inevitable was about to happen, Jeannie closed her eyes. But nothing happened. She opened her eyes again.
"I cannot," he said, putting the arrow back into his bag. "That's what got me into trouble the first time. I was hit by one of my own arrows, and I fell in love with Psyche. It took centuries to come up with a potion to cure that. But I was disconsolate. When mother saw my distress, she agreed not to do anything about the next being I decided I wanted. She and father gave me a gift: to transform any maiden that I wanted for my bride into a demi Goddess."
When Jeannie still didn't look convinced, Cupid said, "With your magicks, you are half there already! You would never know sickness, or death. You would be free! No more bending hand and knee with your magic; no more kow towing to different masters! You would be worshipped, cherished, loved! You could even be here on Earth with me as Mike MacAllister, if that's what you want."
Jeannie thought about what he said. It was tempting, being someone who everyone worshipped, having powers she'd only imagined. But then, she thought about her master. Who would love him with all of her heart when she was gone? How would he survive without her?
"But, who'd take care of Major Nelson?" She asked.
Cupid frowned. It was not in his nature once he'd seized upon something or someone to give up easily. He'd done his job too well. Jeannie was totally in love with Anthony Nelson, and he, though he didn't want to admit it, was totally in love with her. Eros supposed it was his heritage that made him stubborn and tenacious. Bowing his head and then looking at the magic maiden, he nodded slowly.
"You're right, of course," he said. When Jeannie smiled, Eros peered at her, asking, "You are sure this is what you want?"
"Yes," Jeannie said simply. Before they said anything more, both heard strong knocking at his front door.
"You're boyfriend is here," Cupid pronounced. Jeannie wondered how Major Nelson would have located his address without magic, but she said nothing.
"I arranged for him to find me," the God of Love responded. "If I could not have you, I wanted to fix things so that he would have you, although…" he paused to stroke her cheek, "I do think you're getting the short end of the deal, so to speak. I suppose I should welcome him."
The god walked to the front, leaving Jeannie in the garden.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
In front, Tony banged on the red colored door. "All right, MacAllister!" Tony shouted. "I want to talk to you about Jeannie!"
"Is that your usual practice, pounding on other people's doors?" the blond asked, raising a brow. Tony relaxed a little. He had let his possessiveness take a front seat instead of his logic.
Both regarded each other for a moment, then Mike said with a touch of disdain, "She wants you, if that can be believed."
Major Nelson asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"
Mike said in a low voice, "That although she wants you, I don't think she is clear on who the best one is for her." Before Major Nelson could react, he continued, saying, "Still, I promised that I would welcome you, and I've never gone back on my word."
Tony was glad that MacAllister could be sensible about things. He went inside the door Mike opened and saw her on the couch.
"Master!" Jeannie cried. Tony stroked her back as she kissed him.
"Jeannie, do you want to go with me, or do you want to stay here?" he asked, seeing her bottle by the sofa.
"I wish to go with you, master!" Jeannie said without hesitation. "But, he is not as weak as you might think." Tony's eyes found Mike's. The latter wore an unreadable expression.
Jeannie grabbed her bottle and said, "Thanks again for everything, but I want Major Nelson."
Tony looked at Mike and said, "You heard her, lover boy. Thanks for looking after her, but she's mine, and it's over!" He looked back at Jeannie.
"Let's go," Major Nelson said. Together, they walked out, smiling, toward Tony's car.
As he started to pull off, he asked her, "So what did you and MacAllister talk about?"
Jeannie waved him off, saying, "Oh, it was nothing. I'm just glad to be back with you, master."
"And I'm glad I'm with you," Tony said, reversing out of Mike's driveway.
Presently, they reached Tony's house. Jeannie told him, "I will prepare a banquet for you: all of your favorite dishes, to celebrate!"
"Blink in the best tablecloth," he requested. "I have something to tell you."
Jeannie went toward the kitchen, saying, "Instantly, master." She blinked in the tablecloth and went inside to make dinner.
Tony sank down on his couch, reading the paper. He could hardly believe his good luck that he didn't have to fight Mike MacAllister for Jeannie. It was much better to just take his genie back and take steps so that she'd never leave him.
After all, he decided, he was the best man for her. It was time that she was reminded of that.
A/N: Da…da…dummm…..Wondering just who Jeannie's husband will be? I'm not giving anything away, except to say the famous words: tune in next time; same time, same channel.
