James didn't know if it was revenge or his attempts to prevent what had happened to him and Jessica from happening to anyone else. But when he had sent the earlier letter to Lady Cresida, it had not been the only one. He had also sent two more letters. One to Lady Turin of House Oceanala, and one to Lady Ilia of House Parnasius. In them, he had outlined not his entire plan, but that two days later they should report that House Gravitus was considering giving away their ancient summoning technique. Doing this would most likely in his mind make the family become discredited, and at worst a few heads of the family would be executed before the rest would become peasants. But looking at the little girl in front of him with innocent brown eyes, James realized for the first time how stupid and naive that plan had been.

He thought furiously, wondering what he could do to salvage the situation that would soon play out that he had caused. He had played the role of a puppetmaster, and unfortunately now everyone was dancing as if in the palm of his hand. More letters? Perhaps one to the king himself? No. There was no guarantee that he would read it in time, and even if he did he would probably investigate anyway. Warning the Gravitus family? That might just get his head cut off and leave Gravitus with their technique back and Jessica still a prisoner of the necklace.

"Sir?" the girl asked him, watching curiously as he just stood there.

"Ah! My apologies. Please excuse me."

James quickly left and immediately found a room at the nearest inn. The only way he could think of was to return the tome, but how could he if it meant that Jessica would never be in his life again? The woman he loved, or the family he had doomed? It was an impossible choice, for he now understood that many in the Gravitus house from the young children to the servants were innocent in the events that had taken place. How could he rectify and undo his mistake?

He read furiously, opening the book and speedreading through the pages as soon as the door to his room closed behind him. When the suns light faded he took out a light and kept reading, not stopping to eat or drink. Through his reading he learned that at times in the past the Gravitus' had imprisoned an enemy or a servant in an object for a number of weeks or years, only to release them as djinn later. These djinn had had no physical form though, and many had apparently gone mad or begged for death. Their torments were only included as footnotes though; potential enemies that had been dealt with in ways that, to them, were most satisfying.

Still, it was better than nothing. After reading through the entire section and knowing that time was running short, James quickly but with forced patience began to draw out a reverse summoning circle, taking great care to make sure that everything was perfect. Holding his hand where he had cut himself to get blood, James took one last look at his work, comparing it with what he saw written. Then he slowly and silently raised his hands to his neck. Never had he taken the necklace off, not since he had put it there on the day that Jessica had been taken from him and imprisoned.

"Jessica...I don't know if you can hear me...but I hope this works."

He placed the necklace in the middle of the summoning circle and invoked the magic. For a moment there was nothing, and then the mists came. They stretched, writhed, and it was like they were reluctant to give back what they had taken.

"Come back to me, Jessica. Come back."

The mists faded slowly, and in their place was the spectral form of a mermaid. For a moment James didn't see her face, but then she turned to face him.

"Jessica!"

"James!"

He got up and rushed to her, only to run through her spectral form. He turned back, his face falling into numb horror as it registered that she was now a djinn. Albeit a beautiful mermaid djinn.

"You...you are a bitch, you know that?"

She laughed, and James cried. No sound had ever been as beautiful to him.

"Well, at least I'll always be gorgeous."

"And such a pain in the backside."

"Hey!"

She swatted at him, but since her hand was without substance it only wisped through him like air.

"I'm sorry Jessica. I...I hate that following me did this-"

"Shut up. I still have faith in you. One day we will be together again."

James wept, awed by her trust and unwavering confidence. The fact that she still loved and trusted him even as a specter left him feeling undeserving of her. But there was still much to do, and he had to focus.

"So, do you know how I fix this? How do I bring you back?"

"I don't know."

"Wait...it says here in this book that you might be a djinn."

He held up the Gravitus tome.

"Does that mean that you can grant wishes?"

"I don't know. I've never been a genie girl before."

"But you've always been impossible. Alright, let's see...."

James ignored her fake outrage, playful smirk, and hand that again wisped through him as he referenced the tome. According to it, a Gravitus ancestor had made a mistake of using the technique on his son, intending to bring him back. Unfortunately, he had soon learned that to get a djinn back, one had to negotiate with the Djinn King. And when even an old tome mentioned that the Djinn King was a greedy bastard who loved to get but not give, they had a problem.

He mentioned his findings to Jessica, but she just shrugged.

"I know that you will find a way babe. Oh, it looks like the time I can stay out is ending. I will wait for you love."

As he watched, his beautiful mermaid lady slowly disappeared, swirling in a wisp that disappeared after hovering slightly above the sapphire of the necklace. Carefully placing it back around his neck, he stroked the accessory wistfully before he turned back to the book to finish reading what he could.

A final note mentioned that djinns could indeed grant wishes, but the one who wrote the tome believed that it depended on how strong the djinn was and the wish had to be reasonable. Immortality? No, but gaining a lady's affections was indeed possible. The more he learned about this family, the sicker he became with it. However...

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

James pictured the words of the wish he would make in his mind. He paused though. Assuming he wished for the situation to be resolved, if he made such a wish to his mermaid djinn, how would he know that the wish was granted successfully until it was too late? Wishing for all knowledge of the technique to be forgotten? It wouldn't erase the letters and any records of it. Not to mention that it might erase his own memory of Jessica herself. Wishing for a copy of the tome to be put back in the place Cresida had taken it from? That would only let the family use it on someone else. But if the book in his hands was not given, but had been stolen...that might be scandalous. And wasn't that what he wanted? To make the family lose their noble status so they would never have the chance to use the summoning technique again or rape from a position of power as Uselius had attempted? James carefully considered this line of thought, considering this time as many possible consequences as he could. But how to pull such a ruse off and make it look authentic?

James had a revelation as it occurred to him that there might actually be a way to keep the book and all of the information and still give it back. Hurriedly he pulled out some paper and began to copy a few pages. Then he carefully ripped out the other pages and placed them in his inventory. Taking a light to his copy, he carefully burned the edges of the paper and the corner of the original tome. Once it had burned enough, he extinguished the flames and rubbed the soot, making it look like the book had been through a fire. Then he pulled out his knife. Setting his teeth, he began to cut himself, coming dangerously close to his arteries and vital areas. If he was going to pull this off, then it needed to look authentic. He also made sure to rip and tear his clothes, and as a final thought he burned his fingers slightly to give the impression he had pulled the book from a fire. In this way, his plan was to preempt the Oceanala and Parnasius families by claiming one of them had attempted to steal it, causing no clear perpetrator or victim. With the letters he had already sent, the most likely outcome would be a suspected third party, but without anyone except Cresida knowing his face, perhaps he could narrowly pull off such a scheme. But there was one more thing to do. Cursing himself for not doing so before he had cut himself, James pulled out a fresh piece of paper and began to write a new letter.

Cresida was examining her Yolande's embroidery and complimenting her on her skill when her maid ran in.

"My Lady! This was just delivered. The one who delivered it claimed it had to be opened immediately as it was a matter of extreme importance!"

Surprised and a little perturbed, Lady Cresida Gravitus took an envelop with her name written on it. While it did not have a wax seal on it and the calligraphy was rough, she nonetheless opened the envelop and began to read. The more she read the more pale her face became.

"Quickly, tell the family head the Gravitus family technique has been stolen! Alert the king and city guards to be on the lookout for it!"

"At once, my lady!"

The maid ran off, and Cresida scrunched up the letter as rage and shame spread across her face. Just what had she been thinking?

Dear Lady Cresida.

What I tell you now I tell you in confidence. No one else will know of it.

For some time now I have been plotting against your family. You may not know this, but your son Uselius used his position as lord of Sagaste to try to do the unspeakable to a lady I had grown to cherish, a mermaid. Having walked through the Azkar Empire, I have seen the contempt that exists here for nonhumans. But that is still no excuse. And I would not see my lady attacked and possibly killed and disposed of like trash. Believe me, I tried to think of another way. But I saw no other option, and as a result he lost his life. I had thought that was the end of it, but then his cousin, your nephew Garbi, gave chase to us. I made the mistake then of attempting to spare his crew, and as a result he used your family's summoning skill to take my lady from me. After that, I admit that no one was left alive on his ship.

When all of this happened, I resolved to try and get my loved one back. But I was also angry at your family, and determined that your family would pay and never be able to use the skill again. I thought that even if I gained the technique and used it to somehow gain my lady's freedom, then your family would still be able to recreate the technique or simply record the particulars of the technique and continue to pass it on. And so with that in mind, I wrote letters to the Oceanala and Parnasius houses, telling them to wait until two days after I met with you. Then they would claim that your family had given out your technique for a bauble and potentially betrayed the empire. Your family would be disgraced, the key players possibly killed, and you would lose your noble status.

I regret these actions now. When I saw your daughter I realized that she is innocent, and I don't want to see her hurt because of what we or our families have done. So please, immediately after reading this claim that your technique has been stolen. Alert the king, and preempt any potential claims of treason by claiming theft. I will make it look like I stole it, and will leave behind the burned tome making it look like I destroyed it rather than having it fall back into someone else's hands. This way your family will be safe, and I will still have hope of finding a way to free my love from your family's summoning. I apologize for the danger I have put you in, and I can only ask for your forgiveness.

Leopold of Hungary