She sat a quiet room, warmly embraced by an overstuffed chair and curled up around a large book. Her breath and occasional brush of paper were the only sounds. Turning another page and releasing a held breath, she murmured her satisfaction. "I wish this book would never end." She made it another page before the violet smoke filling the room caught her attention.

"I grant your wish!" A man stepped out of the mist, muscled chest bare beneath his big beard and shining white grin. "It is done!"

"What?" she said, then looked down at the book. "No." Her voice rose sharply as she saw the number of pages between her and the back cover growing. "I don't want to be reading this book forever!"

"You should be careful what you wish for, then!" The genie leaned in and winked. "You just might—"

"I wish there was no genie," she shouted very fast.

His grin vanished as his jaw dropped. Wide open eyes looked into hers, and she couldn't look away. His face quivered.

The man stood up straight and swung his arms wide. "It doesn't work that way!" He grinned, and the mists engulfed him and he was gone.