Chapter Twelve
Declaration of Love and Independence
You imagine that my advice worked. I guess I'm a better teacher than even I thought. Sitting back at my table, I waited for the musical act to appear.
Mickey appeared on stage, "Ladies and Gentlemen, without any further interruptions...Aladdin and Jasmine" What? Mickey left stage and sure enough, Aladdin and Jasmine were sitting on Carpet, doing a rather boring and interesting version of A New Whole World. It was time to spice things up a bit.
Aladdin started off, "I can show you the world" I couldn't take this much longer, so I chimed in, "See with your own eyes now, Come closer and meet me on the magic carpet ride" Aladdin looked at me with a "What the hell are you doing?" look but I ignored it. Flying over to them, I continued, "I can lift up your soul. Make you see things a new way. Can you hear it?" The sound-" I was too afraid to finish the verse, luckily Jasmine caught on and finished it for me, "Of our love as it takes flight"
Carpet then took the cue of the song speeding up and began flying around the room. Aladdin and Jasmine then began singing their version, which was now once again boring and completely off topic. It was the end of the third verse and moving into the fourth, but that was where my declaration of love was, so I decided to screw Aladdin over and sing it anyway, "I can see you with him" as soon as I said that they both turned around, Good. "The boy who I raised and knew. Growing closer, it pains me. To see such romance in the bloom" Flying in and landing on Carpet, to make the situation more intimate, I continued once again, "He can give you your world. He can make it better. What am I? Nothing, compared to him" Aladdin was now close to punching me in the face, so I took this as a cue to stop singing.
Carpet flew back over towards the stage, Aladdin then began, "A whole new world" I chimed in, "Someday the sun will rise" Jasmine for some reason took the cue and sang with me, "and when the morning comes, this heart knows, your love was meant to be" I stopped in mid flight, something about her singing with me made my heart skip almost four beats, as if I had died and gone to heaven and returned after hearing the voice of a thousand angels.
I simply watched as they end their song in the traditional way. I didn't even bother chiming in or have them use my version of the song. For this was their moment after all, the moment when nothing else in the world mattered but them, as if they were the giving everyone in the room a gigantic middle finger and they didn't even care.
Landing like I would on a branch to a tree, I found myself at Adam and Belle's table, accompanied by Lumiere, Clocksworth and Chip. Turing back towards the stage, I whispered my final lines, "The world is yours, see what's in store. My heart shall be, waiting here, forever more" Hanging my sadly, I began to cry, I never cried about anything. "What's with him?" That was Clocksworth, always ironically oblivious to his surroundings, "Come now Clocksworth!" Lumiere, more sympathetic, "Can't you see that he is in pain." Chip looked at Lumiere and then at me, "What pain?" he replied, "He looks fine to me" I turned around and spoke, my voice barely audible, "This type of pain, you cannot fix, even with all the magic and all the time in the world." Belle had a sad look on her face; she always took it upon herself to project other people's pain and misery into herself, that they might feel better, "What's wrong Iago?"
I laughed, I don't know why I laughed, but I did. It felt good; it meant that I hadn't lost my sanity, at least not yet. "It's none of your concern Belle" I answered, "Just me picking up the billion pieces of my heart that have been shattered by my own doing, in order to protect the people I care about" Lumiere stood on the table and walked over to me, putting a hand over my shoulder, "Why would you break your own heart?" he said, "Because it's the only way to let her know" Lumiere moved over to Clocksworth, "Told you so, it's about a girl" Turning back over to me, he spoke again, "Who is she? This mystery woman?" I stared at me as if he were the biggest idiot on the planet, if had been listening at all to the performance he would've saw it, but I guess he, like everyone else was too lost in their own fantasies to even give me notice. "It's Jasmine" I exclaimed. Lumiere, Clocksworth and Chip hung their heads, wither in shame of what I had said or sadness for me it made no difference, I didn't care.
Before I could have any sympathies flung upon me, I flew away. I wasn't looking for sympathy, I didn't need it. What I needed was for people to listen, I was practically screaming my voice, my song and my soul out to the world, a world that was both deaf and blind.
It wasn't long before Aladdin came over to my table. I had never seen him so angry before, I thought he was going to go off on me, but I wasn't even close, "What the hell was that?" he yelled as he picked me up, "What was what?" I asked, slightly afraid for my life, "You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Aladdin was screaming as he began shaking me, I tried to diffuse the situation, "I was just-"Aladdin laughed as he shook me harder, "You were declaring something weren't you?" I nodded, there no point in lying or keeping the secret up any longer. But before I could say anything, Jasmine walked up, "Aladdin put him down" Aladdin grumbled to himself and did as he was told and sat me down on the table.
Looking up at Jasmine, I was speechless; I couldn't say what I my heart desired most. The courage that I had before was now gone, replaced by utter shame and fear, "Iago" Aladdin said firmly, "What were you declaring?" I shrugged my shoulders, "I don't know. Love, freedom, it's your pick. It doesn't matter, whatever it was." I was shaking, my feathers started to molt but they could fall off as much as I cared, all I wanted was to get out of this situation and there was only one way to do that. Aladdin gazed at me with an ever staring glare of death, but looking into his eyes, I spoke the truth, "I love Jasmine. I know it may be hard or difficult for you to believe but I love her." Turning towards Jasmine I spoke again, a little faster this time, "As sure and true as the sun rises and sets each morning, like the sun and the moon, my love is something that will never go away."
Instead of hitting me on the head or cursing me, Jasmine picked me up and threw me across the room, it was the greatest love denial face palm ever given. Standing up, I immediately went back over, I wasn't finished yet. I was just about to speak when Aladdin drop kicked me into next Tuesday; literally I thought it was next Tuesday. Shaking my head turning me back to reality, I flew up to where I could meet Jasmine's eyes, kissed her cheek and then proceeded to get my ass kicked a third time. But despite the bruises I have, my broken back and left wing and the emotional scars, it was worth it.
Now I'm lying on a bed, in a smelly hospital room. I would be back on the saddle in about three or four days, but the emotional therapy would take even longer, a projected seven years by psychologists. That was fine, as long as I was able to fly, continue speaking, able to sing and play music I didn't care what I had to do.