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  Special thanks to Narinder Dhami

  Contents

  Chapter One: Home = Homework

  Chapter Two: A Wrinkle in Time

  Chapter Three: Into the Lamp

  Chapter Four: Back to School

  Chapter Five: Friendly Faces

  Chapter Six: Watch the Watch!

  Chapter Seven: A Purple Plot

  Chapter Eight: Carpet Crisis

  Chapter Nine: Time and Punishment

  Chapter Ten: Lava Love

  Homework. I have it every weeknight except Friday. I know it's supposed to be good for me. But sometimes I wish I could just be at home having fun with Little Genie instead of doing math. Because … how many other people do you know who have their very own genie? Instead, I'm stuck going over fractions.

  If I had genie powers, I'd use my magic to make teachers do homework that kids got to assign! Or maybe I'd cast a spell that made little brothers have to do their big sisters' homework.

  Hee hee! Jake would love that. (But he'd probably make lots of mistakes. So maybe that wouldn't be so good after all.)

  Genie's really lucky that she doesn't have homework. She doesn't even have to go to school. Genie doesn't like to talk about it, but she was expelled from Genie School w-a-a-y back in the 1960s (that's why she uses funny words like groovy and cool cat sometimes).

  Genie kept getting her spells wrong. When the Grand Genie visited her school, Genie did a spell to clean up the classrooms. She got all the brooms and mops and feather dusters working on their own, but then she couldn't stop them! The floors were all slippery with soap, and the Grand Genie fell!

  After that, Genie's teacher sent her off to live in her Lava lamp. Luckily for Genie, in Genieland, time is different than it is here in Florida. Forty years isn't even that long there!

  One day she'll be allowed back to Genie School. Until then, she's supposed to spend her time studying magic. But even after all her studying, when Genie grants me three new wishes, absolutely anything can happen!

  Genie says she missed out on all sorts of fun when she had to leave school, and now she's really strict about making sure I keep up with my classes and get good grades. So I should stop writing in my diary and get back to my homework. …

  “Igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic,” Ali muttered, bending over her desk.

  “Rizzwinkle, burpola, malinky,” Little Genie added.

  “What did you say?” Ali glanced at Genie, who was perched on top of the clock in front of her. “What does that mean?”

  “Rizzwinkle, burpola, malinky?” Genie repeated, beaming at Ali. “Nothing! I thought we were playing a game to see who could make up the weirdest words!”

  Ali grinned. “No, Genie. Igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic are types of rocks,” she explained. “In class we're studying rock formations and why volcanoes erupt.”

  “Oh … I knew that!” Genie said.“It looks like hard work, Ali. I'll help you!”

  She shook her head and jumped to her feet. When she snapped her fingers, two pom-poms appeared out of nowhere.

  “Woo-hoo!” Genie shouted, waving the pom-poms and kicking her legs.“R-O-C-K-S! Rocks rock!”

  Ali laughed. “Thanks for the cheerleading, Genie,” she said. Then she wrinkled her nose and looked down at the sheet of blank paper in front of her. “Somehow I've got to get all three types of rock into my picture and draw the inside of a volcano. How am I going to do that?”

  Suddenly Ali noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Her kitten-shaped pencil sharpener was rocking back and forth. As Ali stared at it, a shower of pencil shavings suddenly shot up and cascaded all over the desk.

  “Take cover, Ali!” Genie shouted, running to hide behind the desk lamp. “The volcano's erupting!”

  “Very funny,”Ali said, brushing the pencil shavings into her hand and dumping them in her trash can. “But I don't think volcanoes spout pencil shavings.”

  “I'm just trying to inspire you!” Genie said, peeking around the lamp.

  Ali sighed. “I've been doing homework ever since I got home from school. I think it's time for a study break.”

  “But Ali,” Genie said,“you promised your mom you'd have your homework finished by the time she's done pruning her rosebushes.” Genie skipped over to the window and looked outside. “And it looks like she's almost done.” Genie wagged her finger at Ali. “You're going to be in big trouble.”

  “My mom is really serious about her roses. It might look like she's almost done, but she always takes forever.” Ali glanced at the clock. There was plenty of time for a quick breather. “I'll feel better after a break,” she pointed out.“And then I'll be all refreshed when I get back to the rocks that rock!”

  “Okay,” Genie said, shrugging. She twirled her blond ponytail.“Do you want to play a game?”

  “Okay,” Ali said.“What should we play?”

  “What about hide-and-seek?” Genie asked. She did a backflip across Ali's desk onto the windowsill where Ali kept her stuffed animal collection.

  “Look!” Genie said, disappearing behind a fluffy blue teddy bear. “There are millions of good places to hide!”

  “That's because you're so tiny,” Ali said, looking around her bedroom.“There aren't so many places for me.” She thought for a moment. “Hide-and-seek would be better if I was the same size as you,” she said thoughtfully. Ali had wished herself tiny once before and it had been fun—although that adventure with Genie had ended up with a tidal wave rushing through her school!

  “Far out!” Little Genie looked thrilled. “Maybe it's time for a wish?” And she glanced down at the gold watch on her wrist.

  Genie's hourglass-shaped watch was filled with pink sand. Whenever the sand started running through the hourglass, Ali got three new wishes. But because neither Genie nor Ali ever knew exactly when the sand would begin moving, they didn't always notice when it happened.

  Genie's face lit up. “Ali!” she called, waving her wrist in the air. “The sand's already started falling!”

  Ali looked more closely at the golden hourglass. In fact, a lot of the pink grains were now in the bottom of the hourglass, and there was only a small amount of sand left in the top.

  “It looks like there's just enough time to squeeze in one wish,” Genie said. Ali's wishes only lasted until all the sand had fallen through the hourglass.

  “I could make a wish to be genie sized and be back to normal before Mom comes inside!” Ali said. Her dad was at work and her brother, Jake, was at his friend Michael's house. No one was there to see a thing.

  “Out of sight!” Genie said. Ali laughed as Genie danced up and down the desk, her baggy purple pants billowing out around her.

  Ali closed her eyes.“Okay … I wish I was genie sized, just like you!”

  Whoosh! Ali suddenly felt the bedroom spinning. She began to get a little dizzy and closed her eyes. And then it happened. … She was shrinking! Ali could actually feel herself getting smaller and smaller as she sat there in her chair.

  The whirlwind stopped as quickly as it had begun. Ali opened her eyes and glanced around. Her desk chair felt gigantic. And her desk—at least, she thought it was her desk—looked as big as an amphitheater!r />
  “Ali?” Genie snapped her fingers. “Allison Katherine Miller! Are you okay?” She was standing on top of the desk, waving at Ali, but she looked miles away.

  “I'm fine!” Ali laughed, looking down at her arms and legs. She really was as small as Little Genie. This was way more fun than rock formations!

  A big pink plank tipped over the edge of the desk and came to rest on the seat of her chair cushion. It was her ruler!

  Genie climbed onto the other end. “Whee!” she yelled as she whizzed down the ruler like a skier on a snowy slope. “Who's going to hide first, Ali? Let's have a race to decide!”

  “Where should we race to?” Ali asked.

  “How about there?” Genie pointed to Ali's bed. “First one to the pillows gets to hide!”

  “You're on!” Ali cried. Now that she was the size of her pencil, her voice didn't carry more than a few inches.

  “One, two, three—go!” Genie shouted, launching herself at one of the chair legs and shinnying down to the ground.

  Ali swung her arms around one of the other legs and followed. It was like climbing down the ropes in gym class—without the rope burn!

  Genie reached the floor first, but Ali wasn't far behind. Now that she was small, her feet kept sinking into the soft carpet. Ali felt as if she was trying to run on sand!

  Panting, Ali reached her bed. Genie was already climbing up the comforter. She turned and waved at Ali.

  “I'm going to win!” she yelled.

  “No, you're not!” Ali laughed, and climbed as fast as she could.

  By the time Genie and Ali had hauled themselves onto the bed, they were almost neck and neck.

  “This is like being on the best trampoline ever!” Ali said as they bounced across the comforter. “Being small is so cool!”

  Just as they reached the pillows, Genie caught the curly toe of one of her slippers in a fold of the comforter. Ali tried to catch her. But it was no use.

  “Whoa!” Genie shrieked as she crashed straight into Ali. They tumbled onto the pillows in a tangled heap.

  “Oh, that was really fun!”Ali's sides were aching, she had laughed so hard. “I think it was a tie.”

  “I'll let you hide first, then,” Little Genie offered, taking a gulp of air. Wisps of blond hair stuck up from her head.

  “No, you hide first,” Ali said, climbing to her feet. “After all, you were in the lead most of the—”

  Ali stopped talking. She had noticed something. There was sparkly pink sand all over her white pillowcase—as well as some stuck to her arm. What was it? And where had it come from? Ali gasped. There was only one place she'd seen sand like this. …

  “Genie!” she cried, staring at her friend's wrist in dismay. “Your watch! The hourglass is broken!”

  Glittering pink sand had spilled out through a crack in Genie's hourglass. Some of the sand was scattered over Genie's pants. Some was stuck to Ali's arm. And the rest lay sparkling on the pillow around them.

  “Oh no!” Genie sank to her knees and began trying to scoop up the pink sand. “My hourglass must have broken when I tripped. This is terrible! Rule number twelve in the Genie Handbook is to protect your hourglass at all costs!”

  “Can we fix it with your magic?” Ali asked, dropping beside her.

  Genie shook her head, sand falling through her fingers. “No,” she whispered, tears filling her eyes. “This is all my fault. I should have taken better care of my hourglass!”

  “Well, we'll have to find a way to get it fixed,” Ali said. “You can't be the first genie ever to break her watch!”

  “There is a way, but I can't do it!” Genie buried her face in her hands.“It's too terrifying!”

  “What do you mean?” Ali asked. Her mind began to race. Maybe Genie would have to travel through shark-infested seas or a jungle full of wild animals or cross glaciers and mountains to get her watch fixed. Whatever it was, Ali would do everything she could to help her.

  “I would have to”—Genie sniffed—“go back to school!”

  School! That didn't sound as bad as some of the things Ali had been imagining.

  “It's not as easy as you think,” Genie said, looking at Ali. “I'm already in a lot of trouble there. You know, with all my mixed-up magic.” She took a big gulp of air. “Who knows what kind of punishment they'll give me when I show up with a broken hourglass?” She wiped her eyes. Pink sand stuck to her cheeks. “When Noblus the Genie lost his hourglass, the Grand Genie degeniefied him!”

  “But you haven't lost yours,” Ali pointed out.

  “Yes, but what if the watchmaker won't help me because I've been expelled from school? Noblus was degeniefied because he couldn't perform his genie magic anymore.”

  “I'll tell them it was an accident, Genie,” Ali said, putting her arm around her friend.

  “You would … you would do that for me?” Genie looked hopefully at Ali.

  “Of course I would,” Ali told her. “I'm your master. They have to listen to me, right?”

  Little Genie's face fell again.“But humans aren't allowed in Genieland,” she informed Ali. She started pacing up and down the comforter. “No one in Genieland knows my watch is broken,” she muttered to herself.“I bet no one would ever find out if I just stayed here….” She glanced at Ali. “I wouldn't be able to grant you any more wishes, but we could still be friends. What do you think?”

  “I don't care about the wishes,” Ali declared, standing up and brushing off some of the pink dust.“I don't want you to leave! You can stay with me forever!”

  Genie gave Ali a hug. “You are so cool, Ali! I'll stay right here, and never go back to Genieland.”

  The two friends sat down on Ali's pillow quietly for a moment.

  “So will I just go back to my normal size in the next few minutes?” Ali asked, leaning back on her elbows.“My mom will be coming inside soon.”

  Genie's hands flew up to her face. “Oh no, Ali! If the sand can't run through the hourglass, your wish can never end!”

  Ali turned pale.“You mean … I'm going to be the size of a pencil forever?” she squeaked, looking around her room in a panic.“But I can't! What will I tell my mom?”

  “That you're going to need to go shopping for some smaller clothes?” Genie said hesitantly.

  Ali knew Genie was making a joke, but this was not funny. This was terrible! She could feel tears filling her eyes. She'd give anything to be the size of a real girl—even if it meant doing math homework every night for a year!

  Genie bit her lip. Then she straightened her small shoulders and gave Ali a brave smile. “You're my very best friend, Ali,” she said. “And you're my lord and master. You made a wish, and it's up to me to see that everything works out. And if that means going back to Genie School to get my watch fixed, then that's just what I'll have to do.” She stood up and began marching across the bed. Then she turned back.

  “Maybe you could come too?” she said in a small voice.“It won't be so scary to go back to Genieland if you're with me.”

  “Of course!” Ali said, leaping off the pillow. She had dreamed about what Genieland looked like, and now she'd have the chance to see it with her very own eyes! Besides, she didn't want to risk staying in her room and getting caught by her mom, or worse, Jake. She shuddered at the thought of what he would do if he saw how small she was. She'd be lucky to make it through the night alive!

  But then Ali remembered something. “I thought you said humans weren't allowed in Genieland.”

  Genie looked serious. “They aren't. But no one would need to know that you're human. You could pretend to be a genie.” She rubbed her hands together.“We'll get the watch repaired and leave as quickly as we can, before anyone realizes you're human.”

  “I'll be the genie-est genie ever!” Ali promised.

  Little Genie managed a smile, even though she still looked worried.

  Ali linked her arm with Genie's. “Have you ever been back to Genieland since you were expelled from school?”
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  “I sometimes go back to visit two retired genies who are friends of mine,” Genie said. “We meet near the blue beach.”

  A blue beach?

  “Genieland sounds like a really cool place,” Ali said.

  “It is,” Genie agreed. “I just wish I wasn't going back with a broken hourglass!”

  “By the way … how do we get to Genieland?” Ali asked.

  “Through my lamp, of course! We've been friends long enough now—so you can come inside!” Genie led Ali over to her Lava lamp—the one Ali's gran had bought for Ali at a flea market. It stood on the bedside table. Genie pointed to the base. Ali was surprised to see the outline of a small door there. She'd never noticed it before. Ali hesitated for a minute and then stepped through the tiny door into the lamp.

  Whoosh! A rush of pink sparkles whirled around her. And then Ali's eyes grew wide. Genie's Lava-lamp home was amazing!

  In front of her was a circle of pink beanbag chairs placed neatly around a low glass table. A flat-screen image of a painting hung on the wall. Every few seconds, the artwork changed! Dance music played softly in the background. Tiny spiral lights hung from the ceiling. And a curtain made of pink and purple crystal beads separated the living room from the kitchen.

  “Do you like it?” Genie asked eagerly. A hand-lettered sign above her head said LAMP, SWEET LAMP.

  “It's great!” Ali said. Then she sniffed. Something was baking in the oven. “Yum! Chocolate chip cookies!”

  “That's just my Genie air freshener,” Genie said, giggling.

  Ali spotted a tiny pink Lava lamp on a bookshelf.

  “Is there a genie in there?” she asked, pointing at the lamp.

  “Nope. That's a real lamp,” Genie said. “Genies don't need genies!” She hurried over to a shelf in the corner and picked up a pink jewelry box. She put her broken watch inside and turned to Ali. “Now, if you're going to pretend to be a genie, you've got to wear some genie threads,” she announced. She threw open the doors of a huge closet. It was crammed with sparkly, shimmering clothes in all the colors of the rainbow.