“Looking to catch a djinn?” the shopkeeper asked. “You’re not the first tourist to try.”
I wasn’t surprised she’d clocked me as a traveler. I’d learned that citizens of the empire valued honesty over pretense in clothing, so I’d long since stopped learning how to mimic the local clothing etiquette. The shopkeeper wore the embroidered skort and midriff combo I’d learned was popular among the women here. I wore jeans and a T-shirt.
“Are these really genie lamps?” I asked, excited by the idea.
There were so many on the shelves, all cast in brass or iron or gold, with curved handles or looped handles and spouts that either extended outward or curved upward. Some of the lamps were decorated with flowers and curlicues. Some were plain. Some were polished so well that they hardly seemed old. The rest looked their age, worn and dull like dusty, forgotten antiques left to rust in an attic.
“Used to be.” The shopkeeper tsked. “They’re all protected by the emperor nowadays. Lots of their old vessels lying about after he freed them all. I’ve got the largest selection of them in the empire.”
The statement was said nonchalantly, without a hint of pride. Certainly, there was no pride to be found in the display. Simple shelves stacked haphazardly on columns made of old coasters did not make for an impressive sight. The woman had even grouped the lamps with other trinkets – shoe sculptures and fancy plates filled a lower shelf.
“Do you collect them?”
“Nah. People hear I’ll take them, and I will. Word spreads among collectors, so I get them coming by to shop. I clear out most of my selection every few months, and people just keep bringing more to me. You won’t believe how many are just lying about. All empty, of course.”
“Of course,” I said in agreement, but secretly, I was thrilled, because the shopkeeper had given herself away. If she’d any magic sense, she would have detected the magic concentrated in the air around one of the lamps. The rest were, as the shopkeeper believed, unoccupied. But one – only one – was not.
I didn’t realize it at first, because my magic sense only worked at close range. But as I ran an idle finger along the filigreed surface of each polished lamp, I felt the magic closeby, calling to me from one of the unpolished lamps.
“I do pretty well with collectors as customers. But if you were looking to buy one today, well, just let me know which one you fancied, and I’ll be happy to check what the going rate is for that type of item this month.”
As if she didn’t already know and wouldn’t mark it up, anyway. The empire valued honesty in fashion, but games of manipulation still happened; they were just subtler than in other places.
“Eh,” I said with a noncommittal shrug.
With some careful haggling, as long as I didn’t let my excitement show, I might just be walking out of here with my very own genie.
**
Image Source: 150 Inspiring Picture Writing Prompts To Spark Creativity
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