A New Nest II
You mull over the prospect of whether or not to take the lamp with you, and after giving it some thought, you approach the table. You hesitate there for a few seconds, staring at the lovely lamp in thought, until you decide: you pick the lamp up and hold it close to you, and you nod to yourself.
“Akam,” you say, and you turn away from the table. “I have a question.”
The djinn pokes his head around the corner and notices you holding the lamp - his lamp - in your hands. He floats back to you with a curious expression in tow, although he doesn’t seem bothered or upset in the least bit. Only calm, and earnestly intrigued in what it is you’re doing while holding onto his lamp.
“Would you mind if I took the lamp with me when we leave?” you ask.
Akam cocks his head to the side. “Interesting. Why would you wish to do that, Master?” He smiles after a few seconds, a friendly one. “Now, I am not complaining at the question, mind you. But, to give you an answer, no. I would not mind, as it does not effect me in the long-run - the only effect it has is on where I will go when your third wish is granted, whenever that may be.”
“I was thinking about it,” you reply. “And, well, you said that you’re bound to the shop because your lamp is here. Wouldn’t it be a little better to be somewhere, I don’t know… more lively?” You aren’t sure if those are the best words to use or not, and frown to yourself. “I could bring you home with me, I mean.”
Akam appears even more intrigued now.
“A curious offer to make,” he remarks. “I don’t think I’ve ever been asked such a thing from a previous Master. Usually, when they awaken me, they will ask their wishes from me, and then move on from there. This… this is new.”
“Only if you want,” you say, and you hold the lamp up. “I guess I was thinking, well, you could basically ‘stay’ with me. I live alone, in a decent apartment, and there’s no rules against, you know, bringing in a fancy lamp as a decoration.”
Akam chuckles. “I imagine there wouldn’t be, no.”
He takes a minute to consider your offer, and you don’t rush him. You wait.
“It is a generous offer,” Akam says. “In truth, I never considered such a thing before, but, I am flattered that you would even think of taking the lamp with you in the first place.” He looks at you with a sincere expression. “You have my thanks, Master. I accept the kindness, and, would be grateful for the chance to have somewhere of my choosing in a way to stay, rather than here.”
You nod to him, smiling back. “I’m guessing you can’t, you know, carry the lamp with you when we leave, can you? Otherwise, I figure you would’ve picked it up and taken it with you the moment we left this Shard place.”
“Ha, yes, you’re correct,” Akam replies. “I can hold the lamp, as it IS mine, but, no, I cannot carry it past a given boundary. It’s sort of a requirement for djinn that are not ‘free,’ to ensure that we don’t pick and choose where we end up.”
You look down at the lamp. “What happens if I put this, say, in my jacket pocket and then turn into an animal? Does it… disappear, or…” You pause and furrow your brow. “Actually, what’s up with my clothes? I’m not upset or anything, I’m glad to have them ON, but, how does that work when I transform? Do they just magically disappear, or, is there some other thing I don’t know?”
The djinn laughs heartily.
“Ah, Master, always asking the good questions,” he replies. He’s all smiles as he floats over to you. “Your clothes don’t ‘disappear,’ no. Think of it more that when you transform, your clothing and flesh become ‘one’ in that moment, and when you return to this state,” he sweeps his free hand at you, “they split into whatever number of layers you previously had. Does that clarify it for you?”
You blink. “Oh. Okay. So, then, the lamp…”
“Would be in your coat pocket, where you put it,” Akam says.
“Thank you.”
This is good to know for you, since you were concerned that turning into a falcon to fly would somehow render putting the lamp into your pocket moot.
You gently place the lamp into the big, thick pocket - a double pocket, in fact, which gives even more space for the lamp to rest - then remove your hands, allowing the lamp to sit there, snug and safe. It doesn’t weigh much at all, and only the faint outlines of the lamp give away that, well, there’s a lamp there.
“I’m frankly very excited for this,” Akam says, and his tone and features are genuine. “I have never been given this opportunity before, you know, and I welcome it with open arms. You’ve shown to be a lovely human, Master, and I am deeply pleased that we crossed paths when we did, I mean that.”
“As am I,” you say, and you smile at the genie. “I guess that leaves Alajeem.”
Akam nods. “We could place him on the table where my lamp was. Such would be the easiest and simplest course of action to take, I would say.”
You turn to appraise the table, and you agree that, yes, putting Alajeem’s vase there would be the simplest thing to do, since it isn’t like there’s any pressure in putting the vase anywhere else. You do consider that, admittedly, you kind of want to look around the shop some more, if only to see what else is lying around. And, you have to admit that you want to learn more, too - what Akam said about the various trinkets has you wondering about… everything.
Yet as you ponder all these different thoughts, another one pops into your head, one you hadn’t considered: what about asking Alajeem himself?
“Akam, is there a limit on how often a genie that doesn’t have a Master can be summoned from their lamp or whatnot?” you ask, and you return your attention to your genie companion. “Is it once a day, or, is there no set limitation?”
Akam gives you a knowing grin. “No, Master. There is no limitation beyond the time limit imposed on how long he can retain his form outside the vase - which would be the same as it was previously. If you want to speak to him again, then, by all means, I can release him for you talk with. I would bet he’d welcome another burst of fresh air, regardless of the setting we find ourselves in.”
You muse over this.
You could obviously just chuck the vase onto the table and call it a day, then go explore a bit before you and Akam return to your world together. That’s a choice you can make, and Akam has made it clear he’s fine with that, or else you feel he would’ve objected to the notion beforehand. Or, you can summon Alajeem and talk to the djinn, perhaps even ask him more… and allow him to be the one to pick where he’d like his vase to be.
You know that the other djinn may try something, but, one look at Akam tells you that your genie will not allow that to happen - and so, you have the freedom to choose between the two options: do you make the choice yourselves on where to store Alajeem, or ask Alajeem instead his thoughts?
Silence falls, and you mentally weigh the options and how you feel…
Written by Hollowpages on 26 February 2021