2: Plan A: Insinuate Jealousy
Series*
Seravi·Dorothy*
Humor*
Typical Ep*
Three Sentence Prologue (a continuation from part one's prologue, parody of the original essay): Because of it, Doris has spent all physical and finanfical resources in an effort to look like Seravi's dreamgirl Dorothy in her blonde-haired days, but only to be beaten up -- physically and emotionally -- by his love interest and the fact that there's nothing like the real thing. Because of it, Shironeko probably wonders with her narrow cat-mind why Seravi doesn't seem to have an eye for her even when her hair is blonde. And because of it, Yakko actually believes that that two of them would end up together as prince and princess in a castle faraway...
The race is on, I told myself. Both solitude and silence engulfed me at the presently empty table. My regular guests were about to arrive, and I knew I had to savor each snapshot and sensation of serenity this cottage brings me right now, before everything would be too late. I left my dear doll friend to take a few more minutes of sleep before I would wake her up, for I felt she was having a good time in dreamland...
I had always enjoyed this kind of moment. Even when I am perfectly capable of keeping calm at all times.
I took a few steps and promptly found myself beside the smiling Elizabeth, the sheets too huge for her reaching up to her dress collar. I felt a warm smile form from the inside, and then out on my lips.
Elizabeth, you have been the dearest friend a person like me could ever have. You are the most magical doll one can ever ask for, and I adore you...
"...But not as much as I miss the Dorothy I first met," I whispered to her. She was now awake, even when her cheery eyes did not change throughout the course of the day, and only I could tell that.
We had this special bond existing between the two of us, and only Elizabeth could find out about my innermost thoughts. It was almost talking to myself; I felt perfectly comfortable with her.
"I wish..." I said to her further. Staring into her perfectly round and black button-eyes that shined with her mouth-open smile, I held her in my arms. "...that I could spend days that won't ever end in decades and scores with Dorothy just as I spent them with you. I hope you understand."
"I understand perfectly well, Seravi." Elizabeth answered me after a yawn. "I realize my role in your love for Dorothy, and I have accepted it long before. Good luck in your quest for today."
The knocking on the door began. "Teacher Seravi!" Cha-cha's cheerful voice floated to the bedroom and to the other parts of the house. "We're back from the sleepover at Miss Dorothy's house!"
"Thanks, Elizabeth."
Cha-cha blinked, and felt like she had just snapped awake. I watched her look around at the cottage and run to me in excitement, although at the back of her mind I could see a small bit of confusion. "Good morning, Teacher!"
Shiine and Riiya followed after her, arguing over yet another trivial thing. "I told you... I should have won that last round of scrabble if Cha-cha hadn't helped you! ...Uh, hi Teacher Seravi!"
"So what? You're just jealous 'cause she didn't side with you!"
"I'm the real winner because I beat you four games straight! She just took pity on you!"
"Riiya... Shiine..."
They both answered her at the same time like trained puppies. "Yes, Cha-cha?"
"Please don't fight against each other. We're going to have breakfast now."
Transforming into a wolf, he rushed up to Cha-cha's lap. His blue eyes became larger than ever, and his saliva trickled from the side of his mouth. "FOOD!"
Shiine's brow twitched with irritation, and he gritted his teeth. "That Riiya... ugh!"
I placed flavored pancakes on their plates silently as their bickering died down. Shiine politely asked for cherries, while Cha-cha preferred blueberries. Riiya abruptly flooded his plate with maple syrup, gooey butter, and all the other fruits that were left in the serving bowl. Deep inside I was surprised nothing had spilled, but still I kept my composure.
"RIIYAAAAAAA... I'M GOING TO GET YOU THIS TIME!"
I watched in silence as he violently knocked his elbow on Riiya's furry head after grabbing him away from Cha-cha. My student stared at Shiine in horror, tears brimming then streaming down like waterfalls on her face.
The door knocked in a distinct pattern. An imbecilic look rested on the two boys' faces, as though they had been caught doing what was supposedly done in private.
In no time, my hands had already placed itself upon the thick wooden barrier. Quickly, I took in a deep breath before anyone could take notice. This is it, Seravi...
Three heads of different features dreamily stared at me, and in less than the few seconds I had spent at the doorway I was starting to get irritated. How did I ever get myself into this?
Even their voices were not the same. "Seravi!" they all cried out like an out-of-tune chorus.
There was no use trying to back out now. I was too silly to want Dorothy to change her stupid hair color into a more beautiful one. "Good morning, ladies," I forced myself to say with the least sound possible. I was particularly irritated with the fact that I had addressed Doris -- with the compound word cross-dresser as the greatest understatement to describe him -- as a female.
They squealed all around me. I started to wonder whether there were only three girls... persons near me or not, as their already high-pitched shrieks of delight threatened to mar my thin ear membranes.
I turned to the trio at the table. Riiya and Shiine were still caught in a time warp, and Cha-cha didn't stop crying -- although her immature bawling faded into mild sobs.
Dorothy's about to arrive any minute, I reminded myself mentally. Without hesitation I sent the the two boys and my young pupil to the pink cathouse on the terrace of the Royal Castle.
The King, the Queen, and Lord Genus surely would not mind if they pay a visit unexpectedly, I noted, as a sudden headache started to plague me. If their voices got any louder without Dorothy around I wouldn't know how I'd survive the day getting my plan done.
My self-esteem had already planned to throw itself into the deepest abyss in the land and abandon the magician in which it resided, but my voice and my will was still with me.
"Shironeko..."
"Yes, my dear Seravi?"
"Doris..."
"I love you, Seravi! "
"Yakko..."
"Oh, my Prince Seravi..."
"Shut up, you three."
Three gasps followed, and I sighed silently in my head.
"You're not Seravi, are you?" Shironeko asked me, her cat-eyes narrowing in doubt.
"My Prince Seravi won't talk like that any day," Yakko told her.
I didn't think twice about keeping Doris from speaking up. "I am Seravi," I spoke, starting to sound like my imaginary evil twin pretending to take my place. And destroy my reputation, I added. "The three of you know why you are here."
My body gave way to the true feelings I had right now, twitching with great annoyance when Dorothy's cross-dressing brother came closer. It didn't just look wrong. I hated it.
"Of course we do! We're here to have a date with you," he babbled tactlessly, and his words seemed to bounce from wall to wall. My eyes narrowed as almost everything went black. I felt my hand reach for his collar.
"Yes, exactly," I heard myself respond quietly, in contrast to the loud voice that rang in my ears minutes ago. But it was worse than seagulls screeching over leftovers in the sand. Much worse.
"But Dorothy must not know that," I continued, still keeping calm. It was a surprise how I could keep up with my temper and the blood that boiled to five hundred degrees Centigrade... "You're here to make her jealous--"
"And if we do we'll get a kiss, right?" Shironeko cut me off.
Doris started puckering his disgusting lips, and moved his disguting face in front of mine. I grimaced, then shut my eyes from the even greater torture and humiliation I never imagined possible. I held my breath for a minute, though it seemed like eternity and it felt like I was about to die. No, I could not bear to smell his disgusting breath... no matter how rich he and Dorothy were... it wasn't a matter of hygiene. It was the scent that made Doris Doris that disgusted me all that much.
Disgusting, disgusting... everything about him was disgusting!
Even in my thoughts I acted like a child, no... even worse than a child -- an immature wretch who knew nothing but to criticize Dorothy's pink hair. And so I had to take the consequence. Dorothy... why ever did you have to change your hair?
My consciousness snapped back into their midst. Once again I heard their deafening voices, all swooning over me... arguing with one another about their rights on me... Heaven knows I'm more than just a rare artifact!
Oh yeah, they weren't from heaven. They're from hell, to bring my worst nightmare to life.
Three hard knocks on the door saved me from whatever bickering they had left. All of us froze in our spots as Dorothy started yelling from the outside.
"SERAVI! ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE DOOR OR NOT?!"
Yakko, Shironeko and Doris appeared to have lost their tongues as I answered a weak yes and headed slowly for the door.
"What took you so long?" she scolded me. I kept quiet, though, for I was thankful the preliminaries before the date had just ended. At least part of it was over...
I watched Dorothy sip tea with her eyes closed. I knew it was quite normal her to drink like that, for even I have that same habit, but still I prayed very hard that the reason she shut her eyes was because she could not bear to see me enjoying the company of three other girls. For the whole morning I had plastered on a smile as they ratted out silly questions about my whole life then complimented everything I said, whether or not they were supposed to. She looked too calm to ever be irritated; I was starting to lose hope in trying to make her jealous.
Finally, I stood up, still in my supposedly cheerful mood, and announced to them that I was going to cook lunch.
"No Seravi, dear," Dorothy answered plainly. "I don't think you should lose any precious time with your three dates."
"But Prince Seravi cooks a million times better than you do," Yakko pointed out.
"Yes, Seravi...!" sighed the two other girls in the background.
A smile was beginning to form in my head as I caught the little glint in Dorothy's dull-violet eyes. At last! She can't take it anymore!
I could not extend the celebration of my triumph, though. There was still much more teasing to be done.
"Let me help you cook lunch, my darling!"
"No! I'll cook with him..."
"*I'll* help him cook lunch!"
"Why don't the four of us all cook lunch, right?" I asked them in an almost flirtatious voice, and I hated myself for it. On the way to the kitchen I turned around and asked Dorothy in a sarcastic tone if she wanted to join us or not.
"Thanks anyway, Seravi," she replied with the same sarcasm. "But I think I'll have more fun just by listening to your voice."
Doris yanked me along suddenly. Out of the corner of my eye I could see Dorothy's eyes with more a furious rage burning in them. Another smile replaced my bewildered look as soon as he got hold of me, and I tried to wave good-bye to the lonely witch at the table.
"Seravi, you cook very well!"
"He always does!"
"You know my Prince Seravi... always the best!"
She must be completely irritated by now, I told myself, and then concentrated on stealing yet another glance from her.
"What do you think, Dorothy?" Shirneko asked her, suddenly breaking the blankness on her face.
"...He knows what I think of his cooking, Shironeko," she replied as calm as ever. I could not read anything from her eyes and face.
"Can't find the words to describe my cooking, hmmm?" I shoved even more pride into her face.
"I don't, either, Prince Seravi," Yakko said. "I'm speechless!"
"It's like nothing else on Earth!" Doris agreed.
And they all started drooling and daydreaming over me again. I was getting quite guilty of having to annoy Dorothy as much as the three of them have annoyed me, but I could not just quit from the idiocy I had started. My sanity was lost long before, that day when she left me for the sake of magic, so now I only have my reputation to throw away. And for you, Dorothy, I am willing to do anything just to see you back with that perfect golden hair.
Hours must have passed when I realized I snapped from some kind of trance or nap and heard Dorothy say she was about to leave because it was getting dark.
"No! Dorothy, wait!"
She walked towards the door without even turning back. Immediately I followed her outside and prepared myself to speak to her. I just didn't know what to say to her.
"I guess we'll also be going now, Seravi," Doris told me, as my two other dates followed behind him outside.
"Not even a 'good-night kiss' Seravi?" Shironeko asked, almost whining. Yakko drew her hands close to her chest, then covered the bright streak of red, as though paint spilled over her cheeks.
All three pairs of eyes sparkled brightly, and they screamed, "He's going to kiss me!"
I would have agreed to flirt one last time with them only if Dorothy was there to be envious of me. But she had already hopped on her broom, off to the Royal castle and have dinner with Shiine. No, I automatically told myself. This date's over. I could only blow goodbye kisses to them, and I let pink bouquets of daisies fall as slowly before them as possible so they could catch the flowers... it was the least I could do in saying a hearty 'thank you' to them. I had no time to look back and see how they reacted, but I was quite sure I could hear sighs and my name being called endlessly from behind.
It was hard keeping up with Dorothy. I had wanted to talk to her on the ride to the castle, but I felt I was in too awkward an emotional position to ever dare approach her right now. I saw her eyes glance into nothing in particular, as though they were empty of feelings... Were they feelings supposedly meant for me? And now had she thrown them away? No... Dorothy... don't...
Why am I such in a fickle mood today? Did I want to make things turn out this way?
"Did you have to keep on following me the whole night, Seravi?" She finally asked after I said good night to her by the castle door. "Weren't you content with the constant attention those three girls gave you?"
"Doris is not a girl..." I tried oh-so politely to stress out. "You of all people must know that."
"Of course I know that. But you treat all of them like... like..."
"I know what you mean, Dorothy..." I told her softly.
A soft breeze slowly danced in our midst, and a short silence remained between the two of us.
"Are you jealous yet?"
I could have sworn she wanted to kill me right then and there. But all she could do was smile, and then laugh with delight.
"Seravi, I honestly do not know what has gotten into you today... You've been acting so strangely-- Come to think of it, you always are."
It doesn't seem like she's suspecting anything... But I'm sure she knows.
"Good night, Seravi..."
"Good night, Dorothy..."
* Next! But you can go back!
postscript
* I changed the POV! Sorry, but I have this fondness for a first-person narration. Don't worry, I'll make up for it by making Seravi into a silly little clown!
Blonde is Beautiful © iced*