THE BEST JEANNIE, CHAPTER TWELVE
A/N: Out of the frying pan for Jeannie, Tony and most everyone, and into the fire, as Jeannie II's goal starts to be realized.
Tony looked at Jeannie and the other people in the room. He didn't know what to say, and, given that the girl he wanted more than anything was someone else's genie, he didn't know how to get out of this mess.
"A suitor? Look, pal, I don't know who you are, but..." Tony started saying, before Jeannie signaled him.
Meanwhile, Jaffey was thinking, No! He will not take the Princess away from me! The Prime Minister cleared his throat.
Jeannie II thought, now, this should be interesting!
When all turned in his direction, the evil man said, "Your Highness, I must intercede on the Princess's behalf! This man probably does not have sufficient coin to court or to marry your daughter!"
He pointed to Tony, saying, "Look at his attire, for example! Does that look like the raiment of a sheik or a Prince? If he is a master, where are his followers, eh?"
Simultaneously, Jeannie the First cautioned in a voice she hoped only Major Nelson could hear, "Please do not make things any worse, former Master."
Catching her comment, the Sultan wanted to know. "Did you say 'former Master'?"
Slightly upset from not being chosen to be the Princess's husband (even though he knew deep down that the decision the Sultan had made was entirely logical), Mahrouf asked Jeannie in a low voice, "Jeannie, is that the man you talked to me about before?"
His dark eyes appraised the newcomer. Mahrouf took in Tony's fair skin, lighter hair, and blue eyes. Whether he had riches or not, the lighter complexioned man would be a pearl amongst very many swine, the fugitive knew. Maybe the Princess would agree to marry Jeannie's former master. If that happened, all would be lost! The cobbler felt the bite of inadequacy, and lurking beneath, the sting of jealousy.
Before waiting for Jeannie's answer, Mahrouf had one of his own. Allah forbid he would side with Jaffey, but the former shoe merchant's future with his beloved was at stake.
"I agree on one thing. He should prove that he has enough resources to provide for Princess Jalisha," he declared, his eyes falling on her. "If I am not the right man, then he must be!"
Tony looked toward Jeannie, silently asking for her help. Both magic maiden and astronaut remembered the time that Jeannie's father had threatened death to anyone who didn't "provide sufficient dowry". The Sultan's expression promised that if the ruler wasn't satisfied that Tony could give her all of the treasures befitting a Princess, the newcomer would suffer.
Seeing that she wasn't being observed by anyone, Jeannie thought a moment, then quietly blinked. She thought toward Tony, I hope you understand that this is for your own good.
The Moth that was Jeannie's sister's calculated her next move as she observed people materializing outside the Great Hall, what's she up to?
"Your Highnesses..." Jeannie began saying. When everyone focused on what she had to say, the benevolent magic girl told them, "I was his servant. Major Nelson has many servants!"
"He is a Major, eh?" the Sultan queried, loving that fact. "What are you a Major of, my son? Many armies, I bet!" Tony wasn't sure how he should answer. He settled for letting the ruler draw his own conclusions.
Jalisha studied the situation before her. It was rapidly burrowing out of control, and she had to do something! She didn't know why Mahrouf had said what he had, but she knew if she didn't say anything, the Princess would be married to a stranger who, in her opinion, held no special appeal to her.
"Father," the younger ruler said, "everyone...I will not give my troth over to one who I do not know! You married my mother because she was the one who stole your heart, not because of what she had! I am appalled at all of you! I am not some silk purse to be bought or some pearl in the ocean! I will not be a slave to any man!"
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Tearing herself away from the bedlam that was brewing, Jeannie the Second flew through the window leading into the corridor. Knowing she couldn't remove the beings her older sister had conjured up, Jeannie II landed in a secret place nearby. She tuned back into the form of Zarina and walked toward the room where the action was.
"Excuse me..." one of the fake men said. "Could you tell me where Major Nelson is?"
Jeannie II replied smoothly, "Certainly, darling, as soon as you tell me who you all are...".
"We are his servants," a woman said. The evil genie processed this information as she guessed what her sister's blink was for.
Blast her! Jeannie II thought as she viewed them. This could go to Hades in a hand basket unless I act fast!
The evil Jeannie thought for a moment then, smiling, seized on a plan involving Prime Minister Jaffey. She laughed, mentally rehearsing every detail of the way she would get even with the Major and her sister. It was a plan worthy of her; an idea guaranteed to bring success. She thought about the fun she'd have teaching her sister and Jeannie the Second's mortal pet their much needed lesson. They both would learn that they should never trifle with her!
"I can show you where your lord and master is," Jeannie II told the group. She knocked loudly on the door before them.
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The Sultan asked Tony, "Pray tell me what your name is, and where your servants..." the ruler paused when the knocking became more insistent.
"Who is disturbing us when we have a suitor to address?" the ruler asked, annoyed.
Jalisha pleaded her case again before her father, saying, "I do not wish to have him, as a suitor! I am Mahrouf's betrothed! I will not be ignored!"
With angry eyes, the Sultan looked at his daughter and said, "The law is the law! You must marry either a Prince, or at the very least, a man who is a noble with a title and sufficient riches to provide for you!"
Looking at Tony, Jaffey said, "I am certain I have more riches and treasures than he!"
When the knocking didn't stop, the ruler shouted, "Come in!" Just then, the servants Jeannie the First blinked up came inside the Great Hall. They bowed low before the Sultan, Princess and Jaffey. Jeannie II didn't follow in with them. She knew that if she did, her sister would know the evil genie's disguise instantly and throw the proverbial monkey wrench into the works. The younger genie rubbed her hands together eagerly, awaiting the fire that would be ignited from this tableau.
"Oh, great High One..." a pseudo male servant began saying, "we are here to serve Major Anthony Nelson! Speak what you wish of us."
Major Nelson looked at the beings who bowed before him, humble and subservient. He knew that this situation had to be some of Jeannie's magic.
"Now wait a minute!" the astronaut shouted, still not happy to be engaged.
Looking at the staff with an approving eye, the Sultan wondered about Major Nelson's reluctance to claim his daughter. She'd been sought after by many before. Why was this man different?
"Are you married, my son?" the ruler probed with his inquiring stare. If the young man had another, that could pose a problem.
"No, but..." Tony started saying. The Sultan went over to him and clasped him on the shoulder.
"Then, there is no reason, given that you are a master, why you should not be eligible for the hand of the Princess Jalisha, Lord Nelson," the monarch insisted.
"Father..." Jalisha tried saying, while Mahrouf whispered, "no!"
"It is settled!" the Sultan cried. "I will not take 'no' for an answer!" He looked at Jaffey, who outwardly was sad, but inwardly was promising revenge on the stranger.
"It was a noble effort that you tried to marry Jalisha," he told the Prime Minister, "but you are so much older than my daughter, and anyway, you do not have as many servants as I see before me! If he has that many, he probably has many more goats, oxen, and a larger dowry than you do!"
"I would love to see that..." Jaffey muttered. He said in a louder voice as he gripped his forehead with his fingers, "but as it is, I suppose you are right to appoint this...Nelson as the true and proper suitor! I shall see about making the wedding arrangements."
"Capital, Jaffey...capital!" the Sultan shouted gleefully. "Your reaction is extremely civil, considering that you will not be marrying my daughter."
"Well, perhaps you are right," Jaffey said dubtifully. "I am old, and she is young. She needs someone like this...Lord Nelson. Someone who will be able to keep up with her!"
Jalisha didn't wait to be dismissed by her father or rescued by Mahrouf. She left in a huff to go to her chambers. Mahrouf looked at Jeannie, wishing that he'd taken the chance to employ her magic, even if he had to lie about having riches and status through her.
Jeannie saw the magnitude of what she'd done. She had thought to help her former master. She'd wanted to show that if he had servants and could prove he was a nobleman, maybe the Sultan and all others might leave him alone, but her impetuous plan had backfired. The one man she wanted above all else would truly and utterly be lost to her.
Jeannie II on the other hand headed toward the direction Jaffey went without a care in the world. Not only was her pet lost to her dumb sister, but he was shackled to a woman he didn't love! And the Prime Minister looked like he would welcome any opportunity to smite them all, and that was where she would come in! With him in her grasp, the cave where Hadji's legacy resided was as good as hers!
She adjusted the veil on her face and practiced uttering words in Zarina's lower voice. When she decided her voice was a good approximation of how the real girl's speech sounded, Jeannie II caught up to Jaffey, who stormed toward his chambers.
He turned around when he saw the chief housekeeper's shadow. "Oh, it's just you, Zarina," the Prime Minister said dismissively. "What do you want?"
"It's not what I want, but what I can do for you!" Jeannie II asserted.
Jaffey didn't want to hear any more. "What are you babbling on about, you addled woman?" he snapped.
Jeannie II changed into her true form and said, "I am a genie, and I will give you everything your greedy little heart wants!"
Jaffey gasped, but then let a cruel smile touch his small lips. He had been given the greatest opportunity to gain what he wanted most, and he would not waste one moment!