The Universe's Mixer

The purplish bottle bobbed on the surface of the water, the crystal stopper in the top glinting in the sunlight. Caught in the wake of a small trawler, the bobbing became tossing as the bottle rose and fell in the violent ripples created by the passing of the boat. It was bouncing enough that the stopper should have fallen out from the movement alone. Should have. But it did not. It stayed in place as though stuck with glue. And from inside, there were tiny squeaks and shrieks of irritation.

Which was understandable, as each toss and buck of the bottle threw it about, the occupant inside was jostled as well. There was only so much to hold onto inside the container, and though most of it was padded, there were a couple of hard objects to bang a head into. As she found out on a particularly dramatic drop. The string of curses that fell from her lips would have been enough to make anyone blush, even if they did not understand the language in which they were uttered. If they did, they would probably cover their ears and look at her in horror. People should not say such things about Hajji, Chief of all Genies, without expecting to have some sort of retribution enacted.

Jeannie was angry enough that she did not care. Well, she did not care in that moment. But as soon as her own voice reached her ears, her hands were clapped over her mouth as though to stop it from running away with her. That had been very unwise, and she was immediately sorry for what she had said. Looking upwards, towards the top of the bottle, she whispered an apology that she hoped would pacify. As if her situation was not bad enough, she certainly did not need Hajji to add punishment on top of it.

( On top of abandonment. )