Opaline, Tierrine
Uli descended the column to applause from the crowd and was
greeted by mother with scolding and hugs, slaps followed by kisses. Her future was set from that moment on.
I was yelled at for letting Uli out of my sight – no hugs
and kisses for me, it would seem, but
at least Uli never let slip that I had dared her up that column. I suppose even Uli had her tolerable moments. It also didn’t hurt that overnight she’d
become a local hero. For the first time ever, being her twin had its perks.
It also meant I spent the next year in trouble.
My parents tried everything
to keep their wild child from further endangering her life, but now that
Uli had finally found the spotlight, no way was she letting it leave her. Each week her actions became more dramatic and
daring. If it kept her audience coming
back for more, Uli lived by the rule Anything Goes.
Meanwhile, I chose to follow the grand tradition “If you can’t
beat them, join them”, and to capitalize on the situation. The only question was How?
My first brilliant
plan was to join Uli’s act. Not only did
this anger my darling twin, who didn’t want to share the attention, I ended up
with a 10 inch gash in my shin that required very painful stitches and a sprained wrist. Don’t ask.
Suffice it to say that I lack my sister’s grace.
I also received the scolding of a lifetime from my mother
who declared we didn’t need two fools
in the family, and wasn’t allowed to leave the house for the next month. Instead of going outside I had to help with
the extra laundry my mother did for money.
Fortunately neither my imprisonment nor the foul smell of lye kept my
best friend from sneaking in to entertain me.
Sephon was an artist.
He was quiet, observant and, due to being cursed with a terrible
stutter, he communicated almost entirely through the beautiful pictures he
drew. So while I was stuck at home
working my hands raw, he would follow Uli, draw all the ridiculous things she
did, then sneak into my home at night to show me just what I’d missed.
Sometimes to cheer me up he’d draw Uli tripping and falling
flat on her face. I’m not too ashamed to
say it did help.
Despite my jealousy and general annoyance with Uli (aka the
Bane of my existence), I found that I was sad to not be there to see her
perform. Even at only 8 or 9 she really
was spectacular. Now that she’d found
her calling she single-mindedly pursued it, constantly working to improve her
act – even when this meant her actual studies suffered and she couldn’t do basic
addition, much to my parents’ chagrin.
It was then that I realized how I could join in. What, I asked myself, separates a crazy
monkey child (my mother’s words) from a star?
Fame and money. What did you need
to acquire that? Publicity.
While Uli’s act drew people in, her abrasive personality
pushed them away. I, on the other hand,
am a people person, likeable, even charming
at times, and had become quite adept at smoothing ruffled feathers – both those
of Uli and others. Most importantly, I
could see the Big Picture and had an idea for how we could profit from her
talents. You see, unlike Uli, I could do Math.
It all started with Sephon’s notebook: We already had the perfect advertisements.
After all, if they made me
wish I was there to see it, surely others would feel the same. We just had to find a location for Uli’s
performance that adults wouldn't stumble upon, where Sephon and I could
control entrance and charge an admission fee.
Well, that and convince Uli to stop doing her daring stunts
for free.
Sephon left that part to me – despite being one of Uli’s
only friends, he was slightly terrified of her.
I think it’s what made the relationship work.
I, on the other hand, had to hope that blood was indeed
thicker than water – and that not too much would be spilled that afternoon…
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