JC scratched his head; deep in thought then broke into a jig, singing at the top of his voice ’what do you do with a drunken sailor’. The three friends watched stunned. Here they were on the Titanic, slipping slowly to a watery grave and their only means of escape was a demented genie.
“What are you doing?” Chris was the one that eventually found his voice; Lance and Joey could only stare as the orange genie danced around without a care in the world.
JC stopped jigging about, “You told me to do something.”
“We meant like saving us.”
Realisation swept over JC’s features and he let out a long oooohhhhhhhhh. “Well why didn’t you say?” he folded his arms, nodded and blinked, his trilby hat bouncing off the deck. With the customary flash of light that left them disorientated they found themselves standing in the middle of a market square.
“Witch, Witch.” a child was pointing to the three of them and screaming at the top of his lungs.
JC spun around “Where, Where,” he asked excitedly.
The four were surrounded, and pitchforks were levelled at their chests. “Not very friendly are they?” the genie seemed genuinely insulted by the towns folks lack of hospitality. “And I never saw any witch.”
“I think we are the witches,” Lance said enlightening the genie that was rapidly going into a pout.
JC’s head shot up. “I’m not a witch!” he exclaimed loudly. “I’m a genie. Totally a different thing. A witch casts spells that look like magic. I do magic.” to prove his point the nodded and blinked, turning a horse that was tied to a rail into a dog. “See!” he demanded “different thing entirely.”
Ropes were dropped around their necks and their hands pulled behind their backs and secured.
“I’m not sure that helped Jace,” Joey whispered as they were dragged into the courtroom.
“Good people of Salem.” Lance, Chris and Joey groaned. “We see before us not one but four witches. Bring forth the witness.”
A small boy was thrust forward regarding the three men stood sweating at the bar with fear whilst the fourth gazed around him with interest.
“Boy, tell of what you saw.”
The boy turned and pointed to the four bound men. “I saw them appear from nowhere sir, and then they turned mister Gordon’s horse into a dog.”
The judge banged on his table. “Did anyone else see these feats of witchery?”
Half a dozen cries of aye rang out. JC rolled his eyes and let out a big sigh followed by a yawn.
“Genie,” he said annoyance in his voice. “Not witch, Genie.”
A female voice rang out from somewhere behind them. “He is a witch I saw him, he pointed at the horse and it became a dog.”
“I don’t point,” JC huffed.
“Take them to the cells, they will be tested for witchery at noon, starting with the brightly coloured one.” the judge banged on his table once more as Joey, Lance, Chris and JC were dragged from the room.
Later in a new cell, Chris sat next to JC; his arm draped casually around his shoulders, trying to wheedle him into transporting them somewhere else. “JC, honey, can you do your blinky thing and get us out of here?”
The genie sat with his arms folded stubbornly across his chest, slowly turning crimson and refusing to budge. The short brunette winked at Joey and Lance, “I really wish you would transport us to where Justin is.”
JC blinked twice then sniggered, singing sweetly, “you’re not my master, so you don’t get the wishes.”
“I’m going to kill him,” Joey said calmly as he reached for the grinning genie around the throat.
JC yelped and hid behind Lance, peering around him just long enough to stick out his tongue at the overwrought Italian.
Their attention was drawn to the door, the lock clattered as it was drawn back and the door swung open to reveal four rather large men all dressed in black. Joey, Lance and Chris all stepped closer together.
JC took three steps forward “BOO.” he shouted and the men backed nervously off for a second.
JC’s clothes were now bright scarlet as he stood in front of the others, his head held high and his hands tied tightly behind his back.
“See,” said one of the men, “He surely be a witch. See how his clothes have changed?”
JC stomped his foot angrily making everyone in the room jump.
“Oh great now they pissed him off.” Lance muttered under his breath as he stepped further behind Joey, just ensuring he wouldn’t catch the fall out of JC’s magic.
“GENIE!” JC glared at the jailers and took a step nearer to them. “I’m a genie.” he turned and faced his travelling companions. “Duh.”
Chris sniggered and received harsh glares from everyone in the room and a well-aimed kick from Joey.
JC turned his attention back to the jailors, seriously considering turning them into frogs, but if he did that he wouldn’t have taught them the difference between a witch and a genie would he?
“Well?” he demanded. “Are you just going to stand there gawping at me or are you going to do something?”
The bravest of the four jailors took JC by the arm and led him from the cell. Joey groaned, “you know we have to go with him don’t you?” Chris and Lance nodded reluctant to leave what they was fast considering to be a nice cosy cell.
They were taken to the outskirts of town. The whole community had turned out to see the witch tested and watched in morbid fascination as JC was pushed down onto a seat and tied securely in place. The chair was part of a bigger piece of primitive machinery, attached to a long arm that was counterbaLanced to compensate for the weight of whoever was sitting in it. The three friends watched in horror as JC was swung out over the pond.
The judge, who had been seated under a makeshift canopy stood up and addressed JC. “Do you repent witch, repent now and god will forgive you”
JC sighed. These people were too stupid. He spoke loudly and clearly, emphasizing every word. “I’m … A … Genie.”
The judge nodded to the men holding the counterbaLanced end and they pushed up, ducking JC into the water.
Lance, Chris and Joey stared at each other for a moment before peering into the dark pond where JC had disappeared. ”How long can a genie hold his breath?” Chris asked quietly.
“Don’t know,” Joey replied.
“Does he even breath?” Lance was confused; today was just one big overload. First dinosaurs wanted to eat him, then lions. He had nearly drowned on the Titanic and now he was on trail for being a witch. He seriously wondered why Justin hadn’t corked this menace up and dropped him back in the ocean where he had found him.
JC was brought back up and the town’s folks gasped and crossed themselves, no one ever came up smiling before. “Did you know there was a dead cow in there?” he asked seriously.
“Witch, witch!” the town’s folk’s cries drowned out JC’s further protests that he was a genie. Getting bored now and just a little bit peeved that he was being ignored JC blinked and disappeared, only to reappear next to Lance who fainted, causing the good people of Salem to run screaming for their homes.
The genie bent down and picked Lance off the floor, nodded and blinked and transported them to his next location choice.