Ben wiped his sweaty palms on his pants as he crossed the room to Genie. His heart thundered in his chest as his stomach swooped and dived; he felt mildly nauseous. How quickly everything in his life had been tipped on its axis, shattered, and re-formed. He'd woken up a pauper disguised as a prince, engaged to Rose. Now, he was nobody again, but he knew his own heart, and it was Genie's; wholly and completely. Knowing that she loved him too helped abate some of his nerves, but not all of them. He was free to love and she was not. Still bound to her lamp and its master, her existence was not her own.

Ben was determined to follow through with his promise to free Genie from her servitude, but he didn't know what would come after. Would she stay, would she leave? Would she even exist anymore, and in what way, if so? There were so many unanswered questions and it was in this frame of mind that he reached her side.

"Hi," he shyly greeted her.

Genie turned to him, her beaming smile softening by the tear that kissed her cheek.

"Hey. What's wrong, Precious? Why the tears?"

"We've found each other, but I can't stay. Even if you delay making your third wish for years, there's always the risk that someone else will come along and steal my lamp away again. We'll never be safe from fear or worry." Rey stepped into Ben's outstretched arms and clutched him close, her tears wetting his shirt.

"You're right. I didn't even know you'd been taken the first time, and I am so, so sorry. What a shock that must have been to you."

"He was a nightmare, but then most of my masters have been cruel. It's the nature of those who seek the power the lamps hold in the first place." She turned her head to look up at him. "I was not happy to find myself with a new master this morning, though," she added wryly, "When did my lamp get stolen?"

Ben blushed, and tried to hide it by drawing Genie closer. He whispered into her hair, "I don't know. It must have been while I slept. Your lamp was in my room, but not hidden."

"Fair game then," she teased. "I'm surprised a street rat didn't know better. You getting soft, old man?"

Genie poked Ben in the abs and he pretended to wince at her jab.

"What happens now, Ben?" she asked, returning to her former melancholy.

Ben's eyes wandered down to her lips. Almost of their own accord, one hand rose up her neck to cradle her head, as the other settled on the curve of her spine, drawing her closer. For a moment, time froze as their breath mingled between their almost touching lips. And then he dove into her, his mouth seeking to learn every curve of her lips.

Genie melted and was re-born by his kisses. Her heart thrilled to feel his response to her. He was very happy, if his tiny moans were to judge by.

"Genie," he kissed his way down her neck as he spoke.

"Yes, yes…" she sighed.

"Genie…"

She whimpered at the sound of her name on his lips.

"I wish…"

"What?" she breathes.

"I wish to set you free," his hands cradled her cheeks gently as he whispered against her forehead. "I use my third wish to free you, dear heart."

Genie startled back as magic tendrils roiled up and wrapped itself around her limbs.

"Ben!"

He watched as light shot out from her hands and feet; pure and golden, it streamed forth like a river. And then, in a burst of sound, Genie's bands crumbled and dissolved in a wisp of smoke, her curse undone. Silence reigned for a heartbeat before….

"I know you," a choked voice gasped behind them. "Rey? Is that you?"

The sound of hurried footsteps racing across the balcony was heard and then Genie was pulled down into a double bear hug by the Sultan and Rose.

"Sister!"

"Raia Jasmine...daughter! By Allah, I've missed you, but how did I not know you were gone?" the Sultan, wept as he held her to his breast. "Dear girl, whatever escapade did you get into this time?"

Genie turned Raia chuckled wetly against him, "You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you, Abba. And it's a long tale."

"Tell me anyway, Daughter. You know I love your stories, and I'm not inclined to let you go at present."

The trio settled down into a huddled mass on the floor. Ben looked on at the cuddle puddle before him in amazement. He longed to hear his beloved's story, but he was uncertain as to his welcome after that startling revelation.

He started to tiptoe away to give them privacy, but then he caught Jasmine glance his way. Hazel eyes implored as she shook her head no, then nodded to the floor. I guess she wants me to stay...

"Once upon a time, there was a princess who thought she could run away from her problems…"

Rey fidgeted discreetly beside her father's throne as he welcomed the Sheikh of Agam to the palace. She wished, for the thousandth time, that she had her twin sister, Rose's, ability to be serene and still, even when provoked by extreme boredom. This pompous prince is deadly dull, she sighed, inwardly. Just look at him trying to impress Abba with his knowledge and gifts. Don't we already have more jewels than we can wear and silk to change the curtains five times over?

A gentle cough brought her attention back to the on-going proceedings, "Raia, look what the Sheikh has graciously brought you from his kingdom," the Sultan said with a nod of his head.

"Oh, yes, my apologies, Sire. I thank you for your gift," she said. Taking the proffered item, she carefully unwrapped what was, to her surprise, a small golden lamp inlaid with a lotus leaf pattern made of dozens of tiny sapphires. "It's lovely. Thank you! Wherever did you find such a unique lamp?"

"That is a long tale for another day, princess. Suffice it to say it has long been an artistic treasure of Agam, and I hope your Highness will appreciate its beauty."

Later that evening as she lay in her bed admiring the sparkle of the jewels in the moonlight, Rey noticed a smudge on the side of the lamp. Picking it up, she gently rubbed the lamp with her nightdress. The smudge was quickly erased, but in its place, smoke began to billow from the lamp, covering her bed. With a frightened squeak, she dropped the lamp upon the coverlet and pressed herself up against the wall.

Before her arose the figure of a man and he was...blue! His long black hair was pulled into a ponytail, and he wore no shirt across his muscled chest. Thankfully though, she found him to be in possession of a pair of red trousers. This was the Princess's first encounter with magic, and it would leave its mark. Like every past Master of the lamp, she was given three wishes; unlike past Masters, though, she took her time to decide upon her wishes.

Rey spent days with her head in the clouds as she pondered her wishes. As a princess, she already had everything she needed, and if she wanted anything, she had simply to request it of her father. What do you ask for when you already have the world at your fingertips? In the end, her first wish had been a simple childhood daydream. She wished for a pet tiger and named her big baby Rajah.

Rajah was a beautiful specimen of tiger glory. The cat was a vivid tangerine color cut through with those striking stripes all tigers are known for. Reaching up to Rey's waist in height, she was a large animal and should have been fearsome in the wild. Inside though, her pet had been as gentle as a kitten, and twice as cuddly.

Over time, Rajah managed to wrap Rey's family around her paw, but the palace servants were never pleased to have a tiger to care for, even one as tame as Rajah. Rey loved to take the tiger on lazy summer walks through the hanging gardens. At night, she and Rose would cuddle around the purring tiger and talk. Tigers made the best pillows, they'd agree. She was even helpful in scaring off unwanted marriage prospects. So far, none of the Princes who came to court her wanted her attention enough to go through a protective tiger. One prince even left with his trousers in rags after Rajah took offense at his attempts to kiss Rey.

Rey was content to continue on without making another wish until one particularly stressful day. Pressure had been growing lately for her to make a choice and commit to a suitable suitor. The laws of the kingdom dictated that without a son to inherit the throne, the eldest daughter must marry by her twenty-first birthday to secure the monarchy. Older was older, even if it was only by a few minutes, so the burden fell upon Jasmine to secure the kingdom's future. True, she had her choice of suitors, but she didn't want to marry yet and no one seemed to care in the slightest.

After an interminable day of visiting dignitaries, awkward meetings, and forced good humor, all she wanted was some alone time and a foot soak. Returning to her room in the wee hours she retrieved the lamp from its hiding place and summoned her genie.

"Genie, my second wish is for a day off. I don't want to cause any sort of trouble, I just want a simple day off to relax and be myself."

The Princess reveled in her day off. She slept in and chose to eat breakfast in bed…with her fingers! Sneaking away with Rose, she spent the afternoon at a secluded beach. They frolicked in the waves at the water's edge and, when they tired, read a book aloud to each other under a palm tree. It was with a thoroughly content heart that she slipped into pleasant dreams that night. There was a month left before her birthday- maybe there was still time to find true love. Anything seems possible in dreams.

But the month came and went, and time ran out.

"Have you chosen a suitor, your Highness?" questioned the Vizier.

Jasmine squirmed in her seat, "No I haven't. I'd hoped to fall in love."

"That's a luxury you'll have to forgo, it seems, Raia. You know the law," he stressed.

"Abba, isn't there anything you can do? Surely you won't force me to marry?" Rey pleaded.

The Sultan sighed, "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do this time, Daughter." He turned to his Vizier, "What does the law state if the princess is unwilling to choose?"

The Vizier glanced down at the scrolls in hand, though he already knew it like the back of his hand. He'd been planning for this day for months, inviting the worst candidates for the princess to meet. Surreptitiously, of course. People would notice.

Hiding his internal glee beneath a facade of submission, he read aloud, "If the Princess cannot find a suitable suitor then she must wed...the Grand Vizier. Why, that's me!"

Rey's eyes lit with an unholy fire as she pushed her chair back roughly from the table.

"I refuse! You cannot force me. The law is wrong!"

"Maybe so, but it still is the law. Where would our society be without them?" the Sultan asked. "Either choose for yourself or accept the Vizier."

Rey walked around the table to her father's seat at its head. She cupped his cheek tenderly, "I love you, Abba. Never forget that," gently she kissed his cheek and left the stunned men behind.

Back in the quiet of her bedroom, Rey summoned the genie for the last time.

"Genie, I'd like to make my third wish. I wish..." she took a shuddering breath, "I wish I wasn't a Princess."

"Are you sure, Mistress? This may not turn out like you hope it will," Genie asked.

"I have thought. I've thought it through and through until I can't stand being inside my own head! I can't do what they're telling me to do! I just want to live a normal life. I don't want to be trapped in a gilded cage anymore!" She paced the room in a fury of emotion.

"As you wish, Mistress." Genie flicked his wrist and Rey felt herself rising off the floor as the magic enveloped her…

"But I don't understand," Rose said, "Why did you become a genie?"

"Because I wished myself out of existence. If I didn't want to be a princess, I couldn't be a Sultan's daughter. So I was erased from your memories, and you from mine. To be free of my place in this world it was like I'd never been born, and the only un-born beings are genies.

"I thought I could run away from my problems. I didn't understand then that some can only be faced and lived through. I've missed you so much, you've no idea," she sniffled, wiping tears from her cheeks.

"How could you? You didn't remember us," Rose chuckled wetly.

"I know, but there was always this emptiness inside of me. I longed for a family I never knew I had. Even my genie's magic couldn't wipe away completely, the love we had shared."

The three of them talked until long after sundown, and when time finally caught up with them again, Rey looked across the room to where Ben had been...and he was gone.

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A/N: I have been waiting to write this chapter since I began this story! I've plotted this twist for ages and I hope you enjoyed it. Comments are life. Let me know what you think of my twist!

Also, Rajah is a male tiger in the animated version and I forgot it. When it was pointed out to me I already had my heart set on a female tiger, so I left it.

Heaps of thanks to my beta, Angela the Great, who edited this chapter last minute this morning. Thanks, Friend!