"Dream of a flower"
This picture helps people of creativity

DOROTHY AND OSCAR

by SERGEY MIKHAILOV

Foreword

We were travelling to London (1996) by coach from Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. I sat back in my comfortable seat and recalled what I had read of "Romeo and Juliet". I hadn't been able to finish the play. The collected works of Shakespeare had been taken from my bag at a market back in Moscow, along with my wallet. I suppose the thief thought my book was another wallet, tightly packed with money.
I'm not angry with the thief. The book I never finished prompted me to write a love story of my own. Here it is.

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1. First meeting at the flower shop

As he passed a flower shop a young salesgirl called to Oscar:
"Why don't you buy some flowers for your girlfriend? We've got the loveliest flowers, the best you'll find anywhere!"
"Why not? I'll have this bouquet."
"You've got good taste. I bet lots of girls wish they could be your girlfriend."
"One bouquet isn't enough for my girl - I'll take everything you have in the shop."
"That will cost you five hundred pounds!"
Oscar gave her the money, then told her:
"The flowers are all yours! I want you to be my girl."
"What will I do with so many flowers! Let's give them to the passers-by," said the flower girl. She stopped a man walking past the shop.
"Give this bouquet to your wife! Take it, take it, it's free," said the flower girl. Then she turned to Oscar:
"Now it's your turn, give that old lady a bouquet."
"Excuse me, we want to give you these flowers. Take them, take them!"
The old lady smiled and said:
"Thank you very much, God bless you!"
When they had given all the flowers away Oscar said:
"You're a lovely girl, you know that? Let me introduce myself. My name's Oscar."
"And I'm Dorothy. You're not so bad yourself - you gave me a whole shopful of flowers! I'm so happy!"
"You know what, Dorothy, I want to give you more than just the flowers, I want to give you the shop too! I'm not badly off. My father and I sell beer. You take on a shop assistant and I'm sure you'll do well."
"Dear Oscar, this shop already belongs to me, but thank you very much all the same. Sometimes I like selling the flowers myself, that's all. I enjoy making people happy."
"Dorothy, I want to do something for you. Tell me what you dream of doing most of all?"
"I dream of having my own garden, where I could grow flowers myself... Anyway, excuse me, I have to go now."
Dorothy hailed a cab and soon she faded into the distance.
Oscar stood for a while, trying to understand what was happening to him, then announced: "I'm in love!". The words came to him so joyfully and so easily, the way people say "Home at last!" after a long absence.

2. A dream come true

Oscar was not very persistent when it came to achieving goals. He had lots of dreams, but it was hard for him to carry them out in reality - he was too always too abstracted from the real world. The dreams he might have brought to fruition remained dreams. When Oscar was confronted by an obstacle his enthusiasm cooled at once, like a red-hot nail plunged in cold water.
But Oscar sometimes had dreams which sprang from feelings rather than ideas, and then nothing could stop him. When it was a question of feelings Oscar launched into action in no time. He told himself: "The love of my life wants a garden. She shall have one."
He found out where Dorothy lived from an assistant in the shop next door, hailed a cab and drove round all the flower shops to buy seeds, bulbs, seedlings, spades, rakes, watering-cans...
Since Oscar wasn't prepared to do the digging himself he hired a young gardener, Freddy.
Just a few hours after Oscar and Dorothy had parted in the square, his cab drove up outside Dorothy's house. She was standing by the window on the first floor, murmuring soft words to the cat she held in her arms.
"Dorothy!" Oscar shouted and waved his hand.
Dorothy looked surprised and asked:
"What are you doing here?"
"I came to make your dream come true!"
"What are you talking about?" asked Dorothy nervously, frowning.
"You said you dreamt of having your own garden."
"Maybe I did, but so what?"
"It's simple. You show me the plot of land where you want your flower garden, and the gardener does the rest. Let me introduce you - this is Freddy."
"Alright then, but wait. I'll ask the butler to show you where to dig."
"What's this, she won't even deign to come down herself," Oscar said to himself. "To hell with her..."
Oscar turned to go, but the sight of the cab full of gardening tools reminded him he had engaged Freddy for three months; he changed his mind again.
Oscar told Freddy to come and work in the garden every day, then went away convinced that he would never return.

3. From hatred to love

For the next two days Oscar was in torment. He hated Dorothy, he cursed her, but at the same time he couldn't forget her.
On the third day he woke up feeling relaxed and happy. He imagined Dorothy as she had been in the flower shop - sweet and gay. Oscar wanted to see her again. When he came to her house he saw the butler outside and asked him to show the way to the new flower garden.
As he walked along the path between the hedges he heard Dorothy's tearful voice:
"I won't dig these wretched holes any more, look how crooked it turns out."
"But you're not doing it properly!" Oscar could hear Freddy's angry voice. "Don't you remember how I showed you? You must pull the string tight and dig the holes alongside."
"I'm tired."
"What kind of gardener will you be if you get tired after 15 minutes? You need to work for two or three hours at a stretch, otherwise there's no sense in it."
Oscar stopped dead.
"Surely that's not Dorothy. Surely she can't be digging? How can she let him order her about? I don't understand. How does Freddy make her take orders from him?"
Oscar hesitantly emerged from the shrubs.
"Oscar dear, at last you've come," said Dorothy gaily. She ran up to him and turned her cheek to him for a kiss.
"Come with me and I'll show you our apple orchard."
As they walked through the garden Dorothy began complaining about Freddy.
"He's worn me out. He makes me sort the flower seeds, water them, even dig. Look at the state of my hands."
Oscar took her amazingly beautiful and tender hand with its slender, sensitive fingers in his own hands and began to tremble at the strange feelings which flooded over him. He did not want Dorothy to notice what was happening to him, and he let go of her hand and slowed his pace.
"Don't complain about Freddy to me. He's right. Diligence, patience - these are essential qualities for anyone who owns a garden. However many servants you have, they never do as much as you can do for yourself. Or they do it all wrong. If anyone could make me work properly I'd make a terrible mess of it, for sure."
When he had said this Oscar realized he had an unbearable desire to embrace and kiss Dorothy. He wondered how he could do this, and came up with a cunning plan of action.
He led Dorothy to a garden seat and asked:
"I expect you liked jumping off this bench when you were little."
"Maybe. I don't remember."
"You'll remember if you climb up on the bench."
Dorothy climbed up. Oscar went up to her, flung his arms wide and cried:
"Go on, jump!"
Dorothy sprang into Oscar's arms and laughed like a child.
"Want another go?" asked Oscar.
"Yes, I like this!"
The next time Oscar caught hold of Dorothy and kissed her breathless lips. Dorothy returned the kiss, then tore away and ran off:
"Catch me!" she cried.
Dorothy ran so fast that Oscar was unable to catch up with her. In the end she got tired and stopped. Oscar lifted her in the air and carried her along.
"Oh, I like this," said Dorothy as she put her arms round Oscar's neck.
"Dorothy, I'd forgotten, I've brought you the loveliest rose bush. Where can we plant it?" said Oscar, setting Dorothy down on the ground.
"Come with me and I'll show you where to plant it, but you have to dig the hole," said Dorothy, and sat down on the bench next to Freddy.
When the rose had been planted Oscar wanted to go up to Dorothy and take her in his arms to kiss her farewell, but she forestalled him.
"Goodbye, then," she said, looking at Freddy.
"I expect she's too shy to kiss me in front of Freddy," thought Oscar as he made his way down the path to the gate.
As he walked along by the fence Oscar suddenly wanted to see Dorothy once more before he went. He went up to the fence, pushed the foliage aside and peered into the garden. Dorothy was not there. Freddy was poking the bonfire. Then he pushed a cinder from the fire and rolled it towards the rose tree which Oscar had just planted.
"Why is he doing that? I suppose cinders are nourishing for roses. Good lad!" thought Oscar, and continued on his way.

4. A happy morning for Dorothy

The next morning Dorothy was awoken by the sensation that someone was kissing her hand. Then each of her fingers in turn.
"Who is it? Freddy or Oscar?" she thought. "Must be Freddy. He may be strict sometimes, but he's very tender towards me. Oh, how I want to cuddle up against him. And Oscar? I think about him often, it's interesting to be with him, but he's so touchy, so cold and serious."
Dorothy felt a kiss on her cheek, then on her lips.
"Up you get, sweetheart." She heard Freddy's soft, tender voice. "Time to get up, darling."
Dorothy's head spun as she heard these words. She felt as if she was floating away on a cloud. She wanted to lie like this with her eyes closed forever.
"Wake up, darling. Open your beautiful eyes..."
Dorothy suddenly wondered how he had got in. Her bedroom was on the second floor.
Struck by this thought, she opened her eyes and saw Freddy's face gazing at her in devotion. Her hands reached up to his neck. Freddy picked her up and they melted in a tender embrace.
"How did you get in?" asked Dorothy, kissing Freddy.
"What are ladders for? To climb up to my darling, of course. You get dressed while I take a look at the garden." And Freddy disappeared from the window.

5. The butterfly net

Dorothy went out to the garden with her butterfly net. She caught sight of a butterfly and rushed after it.
"What are you doing?" Dorothy heard Freddy's stern voice. "Bring that net here."
"Why?"
"I said, bring it here!"
Freddy grabbed the net, broke it over his knee and threw it into the bushes.
"How many times have I told you! In the morning I teach you about the flowers, then comes practical instruction. You don't have any free time till after that."
Dorothy burst into tears. It was hard to accept such harsh and unexpected demands on her. But she was even more afraid of making anyone angry. Anger made her anxious and apprehensive, and she tried to bring an end to conflict as soon as possible. After she had cried a little she went up to Freddy and pressed close to him. Freddy pushed her away, but this made her cling even closer.
"Freddy, forgive me, I won't do it again," babbled Dorothy, pressing close to Freddy.
A branch cracked in the bushes.
"Oh, who can that be? I'm afraid," Dorothy said with a start.
"Must be a crow. They often look for food in the hedge." Freddy took Dorothy in his arms.
"Ooh, you're so sweet," said Dorothy, pressing very close to Freddy.
"Kiss me," she said as she closed her eyes and offered her lips.
All this time Oscar had been standing on the path, burning with jealousy. He had seen what was going on between Freddy and Dorothy and it was such a shock to him that he refused to believe his own eyes and ears.
"So Dorothy lets Freddy put his arms round her, she's even asking him to kiss her? I have to think up all kinds of tricks so I can embrace her, while she reaches out for him. What a charlatan, I'll chuck him out of here this minute!" Oscar said to himself, feeling the inevitable, foul taste of burning jealousy.

6. Love demands devotion

Dorothy and Freddy were sitting on the bench, locked in an embrace. Freddy was teaching her:
"It's as if flowers feel love, too. I sense they are waiting for me. They remember how I look after them, how I talk to them. If you plant a flower without love it will sicken."
Dorothy looked at the rose she had planted with Oscar and exclaimed:
"Oh, what's wrong with the rose, it's all wilted! Why has it wilted? It had healthy roots. I watered it every day."
Oscar heard this conversation and felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
"So that's why he slipped that cinder underneath the rose bush. Not so it would live, but so it would die!"
But it was strange, instead of a new surge of anger towards Freddy, he felt sorry for him.
"If he loves Dorothy so much that his jealousy leads him to play dirty tricks like that, I won't give him cause for rivalry. I'll leave the way clear for them," said Oscar to himself.
He began to listen to Freddy's lesson again.
"...Love demands devotion," said Freddy, tracing the word in the sand with a stick. "It's impossible to love two people at once. That's not love. You have to choose one of them and devote all your feelings to him."
"But how do you know which one loves you most, and who you really love most of all?" Dorothy wondered aloud.
"The rose gave the answer to the first question. And the second only you can answer."
"Freddy, I heard a legend about an invisible flower which can only be seen by those who are truly in love."
"Those are silly daydreams. You need only look into your own heart and you'll see who you love. Who is tender and affectionate towards you?" asked Freddy.
Dorothy closed her eyes and repeated slowly:
"Tender and affectionate..."
Then she suddenly came back to earth and said in a trembling voice:
"Freddy, I'm hot. Help me take off my jacket. Undo this button... and this one. And now put your arms round me and kiss me."
Oscar could not bear to watch what was happening.
"Why should I have to bear this suffering, this torture..? All this crafty scheming? That's it, they've come together, like moths drawn to a flame. Should I kill him? Kill them both? What should I do? Kill myself? Your advice is only fit for the devil. To hell with you all!.. I can kill my rival, but I can't stop myself thinking about him."
"Have you lost something?" asked the butler, suddenly appearing from nowhere.
"Oh, no. I thought I'd dropped my keys, but I've found them in my other pocket," Oscar replied in a voice which shook with emotion.
Dorothy heard their conversation. She ran up to Oscar, offered him her cheek and chirped:
"Let's go to the apple orchard. I do so want to be with you!"
Freddy approached and tugged Dorothy's arm.
"Don't forget," he said, pointing his stick at the word "devotion".
"I'm afraid I only dropped by for a minute, to find out how you're getting on. I see everything's in order. Goodbye."
"Stop, Oscar," cried Dorothy suddenly. "The last time you were here you asked what flower I wanted for my garden. Now I know. I want the invisible flower."
"Dorothy, you can only grow invisible flowers in fairy tales," replied Oscar.
"Then let my whole life be like a fairy tale. I want that so much," said Dorothy, so decisively and with such a trembling voice that Oscar shivered.

7. The downpour

Oscar stepped into the street outside.
"To hell with them and their flowers," he said, kicking at a pebble. "All this week I've been taken up with that stupid girl: spades, watering-cans, seeds... And all she can say is "Let my life be like a fairy tale"! I don't know about fairy tales, but this will certainly make a good anecdote. And Freddy's a fine fellow! How quickly he got her trained. Well done lad, well done, you showed me how naive and childish I was! He's right - you must fight for love! I'm sure he won't loosen his grip on her now, he'll marry her. A fine bride she is, and rich too. How did he do it?.. I'm going to the pub to drown my sorrows in beer."
The further Oscar walked, the more he felt the lump in his throat. Scenes flashed across his mind. How Dorothy had pressed close to Freddy, how they embraced and kissed. The injury he felt soon conjured up a host of unpleasant memories, both old and new. Oscar's suffering reached such a pitch that he prayed: "Oh God, release me from this torment!"
Suddenly there was a crash of thunder and the rain came down in torrents. Oscar began to sob like a child as the summer rain poured down on him.

8. Where does the invisible flower grow?

Oscar wandered along the street without knowing where he was bound. He had been restlessly pacing round town for several hours. He saw a bench and sat down to rest. A grandmother with a little girl of about four were sitting at the other end. The little girl came up to Oscar and asked:
"Would you like me to tell you a story?"
"Yes, I would."
"What about?"
"About love."
"Alright then! Once upon a time there lived a man. A shoemaker. The boots he made were no good and no one would buy from him. But one day he fell in love with a maiden and after that the boots he made were good boots. Soon the whole town stood in line for him to make them boots. And that's the end. Would you like me to tell you another story?"
"Mary, don't bother the gentleman. Go and pick that white flower over there and bring it to me."
At the word "flower" Oscar gave a start. Turning to the old lady he asked:
"I've heard it said that the invisible flower really exists. Perhaps you know where it grows?"
"Why do you need the invisible flower, young lad?" asked the old lady.
"The girl I'm in love with has asked me to bring her the flower."
"Well, if that's the case, listen to me. In the north there's a mountain range. The invisible flower grows at the edge of the meadows, where the snow begins. But you can only see the flower at the full moon, and only then if your love has the beauty and the endurance of a diamond."
"Thank you, old lady, thank you!" said Oscar. He jumped up from the bench and quickly set off for home to prepare for his journey to the mountains.
After walking a few paces Oscar turned round. He saw the old woman and her granddaughter get up from the bench and go off down the path. But what was happening? Suddenly they began to melt into thin air. And soon they disappeared completely, as if they had never been there at all.
"Perhaps I was dreaming?" thought Oscar, and stamped his feet on the ground. His boot raised a cloud of dust. "So they were good fairies. And Dorothy was right when she said she wanted her life to be like a fairy tale. I've already stepped into the fairy tale."
AND WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENED NEXT?

9. The talking stone

Oscar wandered along the mountain paths for a long time in search of the invisible flower. One day he saw a huge boulder by the highland stream. Oscar stopped to rest there and suddenly he heard a voice:
"Why are you looking for the flower? It will only bring you sorrow!"
"My beloved asked me to find it, so find it I will!"
"The flower will only bring you sorrow. Stop looking for it! I will reward your true love for Dorothy. I will make Dorothy love you."
"Kind stone, thank you for your concern, but my beloved asked me to bring the invisible flower!"
"What is most important to you: the whims of a girl who is making a fool of you, or her love?" asked the stone angrily, and shifted a little.
"She may be making a fool of me, but she's ashamed of her love for me, and when she sees the invisible flower..."
"Ha, ha, ha," cackled the stone. "I can see what a fool you are. Alright then, let the invisible flower teach you some sense. Walk round me three times with you eyes closed, and you will see what you are searching for."
Oscar did as the stone told him. When he opened his eyes he saw a crimson flame of colour on the stone.
"Greetings, invisible flower. I want to carry you off to my beloved. Tell me, how can I do that?"
"Very simple. Pick me and clasp me to your bosom. If you want to plant me, as soon as my stem touches the ground I will grow roots."

10. The invisible flower does not exist

When Oscar arrived in his hometown it was already dark, but he was impatient to show the flower to Dorothy and decided to go to her at once.
As he made his way through the garden Oscar could see that the window of her bedroom on the second floor was open. Oscar scrambled up the tree which grew beside her window and in no time he was standing next to Dorothy's bed.
Oscar kissed Dorothy's lips as she slept. She opened her eyes and held out her hand, murmuring:
"You're already here, darling?"
"Yes, my love, I've brought you the invisible flower. Look how brightly coloured it is!"
"Who's that? Is it you, Oscar?" asked Dorothy in alarm.
"Yes, it's me. I've just come back from the mountains, where I found the flower of our love. Look, here it is!"
"I can't see anything, it's so dark in here!"
"What? You really can't see it? It's shining so brightly! As bright as a beam of sunshine!"
"I don't see any shining flower! You're making this up! The invisible flower doesn't exist! How did you get in?"
"Through the window."
"Then you can leave through the window, too. I want to sleep."
"But... what do you mean?"
"Leave at once, or I'll call the butler."

11. The garden of bright sorrow

When he had climbed down to the ground, Oscar looked at the flower and said angrily:
"Why did I go looking for you? Now I know she doesn't love me this is all hopeless. What use are you now? The stone was right... What a fool I am..."
Then Oscar heard someone coming along the path. The silhouette of Freddy carrying a ladder appeared between the trees. Oscar was afraid Freddy would see the bright colour of the invisible flower, but the gardener went on his way without noticing anything. Freddy leaned the ladder against the house and climbed in the window.
"Is that you, darling?"
"Yes, it's me, sweetheart..." Oscar could hear all this and felt as if he would burst from the emotions which surged inside him. He smothered his cry of anguish:
"I can't bear it! What use is love which brings such suffering? Why do you look at me like that, beautiful flower?"
Oscar got up and left the garden, beyond caring whether he could be seen or not. He marched along, matching his steps to these words:
"I never want to see her again!
I never want to see her again!
I never want to see her again!
I never want to see her again!"
For a long time Oscar marched along in time, and eventually he felt a bit better, his pace slackened and without thinking he began to repeat:
"Goodbye Dorothy, goodbye!
Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye!
Goodbye, Dorothy, goodbye!
Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye!"
After a while, without thinking, he began to chant:
"Goodbye, my love, goodbye!
Goodbye, my love, goodbye!"
Suddenly Oscar stopped. Before him stretched a broad field he had recently bought to grow hops. Oscar stood motionless, trying to understand what had happened to him in the last few hours:
"I no longer insist on mutual love. Dorothy is happy with someone else, why should I try to ruin their happiness. As a reward for my decision I have a new feeling, one I never knew before - bright sorrow. What an acute yet sweet sensation. It has prompted me to action. This is what I'll do! To hell with hops! I shall plant a flower garden here. A garden of bright sorrow. It will be the most beautiful garden in the world!"

12. The invisible flower changes colour

Oscar thought his efforts to create a garden of bright sorrow would distract his thoughts from Dorothy and he would gradually forget her, but they had the opposite effect. After a while his extravagant plans for the garden were overwhelmed by thoughts of Dorothy.
At the first sunrise over the future garden Oscar thought to himself: "Dorothy must have woken now, I expect she's looking out her window at the sun. We're both looking at the sun. Good morning, my love. Would you like the sun to sparkle with diamonds? No sooner said than done! I shall put a fountain in the garden, on the side looking east. The transparent drops will glisten like diamonds in the warm rays of the sun."
Whatever Oscar saw around him, in his thoughts everything related to Dorothy and Dorothy alone. When he heard birdsong he was reminded of Dorothy's gay voice. When he saw a butterfly he was reminded of Dorothy's tenderness and beauty. Even the sprightly fieldmouse running through the grass reminded Oscar of Dorothy's merry, playful character. So it is not surprising that Oscar devised an alphabet of flowers. He composed verses about his love for Dorothy, translated them into flower-language and contrived flowerbeds of poetry. He decided to plant the invisible flower in the middle of one of these flowerbeds. But Oscar was astonished when he went to the sheltered corner of the garden where he had left the invisible flower. It had changed colour - from bright red to a tender pink.
"I expect being with flowers all the time has changed something inside me. Yes, yes, I have become more tender and sensitive. Perhaps my love will find a way to reach Dorothy's heart now!" thought Oscar.
From that moment, whatever happened to Oscar it was linked in his thoughts to his meeting with Dorothy. When the sun peeped out from the storm clouds Oscar thought: "Dorothy is saying hello and asking me to go and see her". When it started to rain Oscar thought: "Tender, wonderful Dorothy is angry with me for not going to see her." In the end Oscar set off to meet her, carrying a bouquet of flowers.

13. Where does love disappear to?

Dorothy was sitting on the bench under a tree with her crochet.
"Hello Dorothy, please accept this bouquet of flowers..."
"Thank you. Put them down over there, I'm busy."
"This isn't an ordinary bouquet, Dorothy, it's a bouquet of verse. Every flower represents a letter of the alphabet."
"Very clever."
"Shall we make a flowerbed from them? It will be a bed of verse."
"If you want, go right ahead," said Dorothy without looking at Oscar.
Oscar started to dig up the stretch of earth he deemed best suited. Dorothy came up to him, clutched her hands to her head and called out:
"What have you done? Who said you could dig here? Freddy, Freddy, look what he's done!"
Freddy emerged from the house.
"What is it, darling, why are you so angry?" he asked, kissing Dorothy's eyes and lips.
"Of course I'm angry. We wanted to put a bench here, and he's dug it all up." She turned to Oscar:
"Start shovelling the soil back this minute! In ten minutes I want everything the way it was before!"
When he had returned to his garden the wounded Oscar went over to his invisible flower, sat down next to it and began to speak softly:
"If you still exist, that means your love is strong - but why is it powerless to change things... why can't it inflame mutual love? Where do all my thoughts about her disappear to? Why doesn't she sense what I am thinking about her?.. Why are you silent, little flower?.. Well, I've decided to take you back to the stone. What a fool I was to refuse his offer - now we could have been the happiest couple on earth. But maybe there's hope yet, maybe the stone will forgive me for choosing you instead."
"Don't do it, Oscar!" pleaded the flower. "Ask whatever you want, but don't take me back."
"Ask whatever I want..." repeated Oscar. "But you can't make her love me."
"You're right, I can't. But I can show you why she doesn't love you."
"Then show me."
"You must promise that when you know why, you won't make anyone suffer and you won't take me back to the stone, however hard that may be for you."
After thinking a moment Oscar nodded his head as if he consented to anything, however bad it might be:
"I agree."

14. The butterfly and the bee

"Look at me carefully," said the invisible flower.
Oscar watched as a petal detached itself from the flower, flew straight through him and then turned into an amazingly beautiful butterfly.
"This butterfly is your love for Dorothy. Follow her," said the flower.
The butterfly flew and flew and flew until it came to Dorothy's garden.
Dorothy and Freddy were sitting on the bench with their arms round one another. The butterfly flew towards Dorothy, but it suddenly began to struggle against an invisible barricade. It flew around Dorothy and Oscar, but was unable to cross this enchanted circle. The butterfly fluttered in front of Dorothy's face, but she did not even see it.
"How can it be, how can it be?.. My love is so strong, it must rise above this obstacle!" pleaded Oscar.
Suddenly the butterfly vanished, and at that very moment Dorothy waved her arms and exclaimed:
"Oh, a bee, a bee!.. Oh no, I'm frightened!"
Oscar ran up to protect his beloved and saw the bee buzzing around Dorothy. He began to beat it away, then suddenly felt a sharp pain in his finger.
"The beast, it's stung me," said Oscar, raising his hand and shaking it.
"Thank you, Oscar, if it hadn't stung you it would have done the same to me," said Dorothy, tenderly embracing Oscar and laying her head on his chest...
When he got back to his garden Oscar told the invisible flower what had happened, then asked:
"Why did the butterfly disappear? The butterfly of my love disappeared!"
"You fool! You see your love for Dorothy as a beautiful butterfly, but Dorothy sees it in quite a different light. For her your love is like a bee which buzzes and stings."
"What kind of love is that?!" said Oscar, gazing at his swollen finger. "I wouldn't wish that kind of love on anyone. It's just pathetic! But what can I do to make my love seem like a butterfly to Dorothy, not a bee? Who can help me?" beseeched Oscar.
"The stone by the mountain stream knows how to help you!" replied the flower.
Oscar sat down on the ground, head in hands, as motionless as a statue and lost in thought.

15. Where the invisible flower disappeard to

As he sat thinking scenes from the past floated before him.
Oscar and Dorothy handing out flowers to passers-by.
Oscar is driven to Dorothy's house in the cab loaded with gardening equipment.
Those wonderful moments when Dorothy sprang into his arms.
Then a scene which filled him with loathing - Freddy entering Dorothy's bedroom.
"Why am I seeing all this pass before my eyes, like a dying man? I must stop thinking about her!" Oscar resolved. But his memory continued to play tricks on him, replaying that moment when Dorothy pressed close to him after he had saved her from the bee. He was once again overcome by tender emotions for her, but was rescued by the pain in his finger from the "sting" of the bee.
He remembered how the butterfly had turned into a bee and this made him angry.
"Enough, enough, enough! Leave me in peace!" Oscar roared as loud as he could at the thoughts Dorothy had evoked, and began to stamp on his poetic flower beds.
The men working in the garden watched this strange scene with alarm.
"Good God! What's wrong with you?" they asked.
"To hell with these stupid flowerbeds! Let's plant roses here and sell them! Plant carnations and sell them!"
"At last. We thought you'd gone out of your mind."
"You were right," Oscar said to himself. "It's true, I've been out of my mind these last few months."
He walked over to the part of the garden where he had grown a million scarlet roses to scatter all over Dorothy's house and garden.
"How stupid I've been! These million roses will turn into a million buzzing bees for her."
Oscar bent over a rose to breathe its fragrance. The scarlet bud had not yet opened, and it reminded him of Dorothy's scarlet lips. His own lips whispered: "I love you, Dorothy!".
"No! No! No! To hell with her! She doesn't need me, it's better if I devote all my caresses, attention and thoughts to the flowers."
He squatted next to the rose and whispered: "I love you, you, my little rose. You are my flower, I am your bee. You are the most beautiful flower in the world!"
Oscar said with a sigh of relief:
"At last, at last I know what to do. From now on I shall replace all my thoughts about Dorothy with thoughts about you, my beloved flowers."
From that moment Oscar began a new life. Since Oscar had thought about Dorothy all the time, he stayed with the flowers from morning to night. He thought up names for them, stroked them, kissed them, read them poetry, sang to them.
But now and then he couldn't help himself, and all the same he dreamed of Dorothy for long periods of time. He imagined Dorothy complaining to him: "You've forgotten me, you don't love me any more! How can you forget me?" And Oscar would reply: "I love you and I will always love you, despite the fact that you don't love me..."
"Aha! You've come back again to haunt me!" Oscar would cry out as he caught himself imagining their conversation, and he would purposely begin thinking of the garden instead. He would tell himself: "Instead of wasting so much time and energy on useless speeches, you'd do better to think when you're going to buy the men new watering-cans and gardening gloves.".
The days passed as Oscar struggled against his thoughts of Dorothy. But one day it occurred to him:
"What will Dorothy do if she thinks I've grown cold towards her?.. Most likely she'll regret what has happened, rush into my arms and plead with me to stay with her..." Then Oscar came to: "Oh no, these foolish daydreams have started again! But all the same, how can I stop loving Dorothy if I've been given the invisible flower as a symbol of my eternal love for her?"
Oscar went to the far corner of the garden, to where he had left the invisible flower, but it was not there.
"Invisible flower, where are you? Where have you vanished to?"
And suddenly tiny fireflies rose up from every flower in the garden and flitted towards the spot where the invisible flower had been. In no time they came together, making a flower which consisted of millions of petals, then they dispersed and returned to the flowers.

16. The Queen

Soon after Oscar began selling flowers from his garden rumours spread around town that his flowers had a magical effect: if a young man presented them to his sweetheart she was sure to fall in love with him.
The flowers were so successful that people travelled from all the towns in the kingdom to buy them. When the young King Richard heard about the magical flowers he decided to visit the garden where they were grown.
So one day the King's gilded coach drew up beside Oscar's garden. The townspeople watched the King and his suite with curiosity.
As he took the King round Oscar told him all he could about the garden, except the story of his love for Dorothy.
"Dear Oscar, I think a beautiful maiden must have been responsible for making you plant this garden. Am I right?" asked Richard.
"Your Majesty! I don't really want to talk about that..." said Oscar, trying to evade the question.
"I guessed right, then! So who is she? I want to see her! Bring her here!"
Oscar looked for Dorothy in the crowd and went over to her. He was even pleased that she no longer evoked the same feelings inside him. Instead of Dorothy it was as if he saw a lovely bouquet of flowers before him. Smiling not at her, but at the flowers, Oscar said: "Come, the King wants to see you!".
Then something happened which no one could possibly have foreseen, although it had far-reaching consequences for the entire kingdom.
When Dorothy and Richard looked at one another for the first time they were suddenly bewitched, struck dumb for maybe ten minutes, although nobody could remember for sure - all those present were transfixed by the feeling that something extraordinarily significant was taking place before their very eyes.
Dorothy and Richard stood and gazed into one another's eyes; then they suddenly asked, both at the same time: "Is it You?"
The next moment they were drawn together as if by a magnet, clinging to one another. Tears of boundless joy rolled down their cheeks.
Richard murmured: "I've been dreaming of you for three years. And now I've found you. I've found you at last, my beloved!"
Dorothy whispered in reply: "When I looked into your eyes I felt I had seen everything before. In my dreams. Even now I look at him and I see what will happen next..."
Dorothy began to look around her. As if searching for something.
"There it is, there's the invisible flower! I can see it, I can see it!" cried Dorothy, looking questioningly at Richard, hoping yet fearing his reply.
"Can you see it?" asked Dorothy.
"Where?"
"There, in the middle of the tulip bed."
"No. I can't see anything out of the ordinary."
"Look hard," pleaded Dorothy.
"What's that, over there? Yes, I can see it! I can see the magical flower! It shines so brightly! Is that really the legendary flower of love?"
"Yes, it is, and it's saying that we will love one another for ever and ever," cried Dorothy. She buried her head in Oscar's shoulder and began to sob.
"Worthy citizens!" called the King in a loud voice. "I can now reveal the secret, why I have not married in the last three years. I was looking for the girl of my dreams. And now I have FOUND her!"
There was a joyful cry from the crowd.
"Allow me to present your future Queen!"
Richard bowed to Dorothy and asked:
"What is your name?"
"Dorothy!"
"Dorothy and I shall be married this very day!"
The crowd rejoiced.

.........................................................

Oscar went up to Dorothy.
"Congratulations! I never thought I would know a real live queen!"
"Thank you, Oscar," replied Dorothy, and they kissed.
"I never thought I would kiss a queen, either!" said Oscar.
"Do you remember, I asked you to turn my life into a fairy tale?"
"I remember. But for you it is only just beginning. It begins like this:
"In a certain kingdom, in a certain realm, there lived a young King and a young Queen. They loved one another more than anyone had ever loved before. And one day...""

Буду рад, если мое творчество понравиться вашим детям, и тем, кто пишет сценарии для мультфильмов, кинофильмов, детских праздников, компьютерных игр. 
Присылайте ваши рисунки ( иллюстрации) для сказок.

I shall be glad, if my creativity to like your children, and those who writes scripts for cartoon films, films, children's holidays, сomputer games.
Send your figures (illustrations) for fairy tales.