CHAPTER 5 – THE LONGEST YEAR: PATTY

As Patty smoked into her bottle at Haji's command, her spirit was in tears though her body could no longer formulate them. Years before, when Haji and Asmire had bottled her for disobedience to her training master, she didn't feel like this. Now she felt like her whole heart had been wrenched from her physical form and tossed into the sea. She hadn't been in love with her training master like she was in love with Master Howard. She had never experienced physical love and known the powerful feelings that it produced.

Previous experience had taught Patty what to put in her bottle before a long term stay. Some things were already in the bottle, where they had been for years. She added some new reading material, including a spell book from her training days, a human calendar for counting the worldly days to her release, and a picture of Howard. It was from a few years before, when he wore a khaki-colored uniform instead of the blue of Con-Air, but she didn't care. She placed it on a small table inside her bottle so that she could see it every day. In this way, Howard was still with her.

Patty had learned how to go into an ethereal state, in her djinn training class. One of the other students in her class had told them quietly, "this will be very useful if we are ever bottled." Indeed, on Patty's first bottling, she used that spell. There was also a spell that could take a djinn spirit out of the bottle, so that one could keep up with human events. She had learned that spell in class, too, but never bothered to use it in her first bottling. This time, she would practice it. She wanted to go over to Chicago and check on Howard.

It took several tries to get the Spirit-from-the-Bottle spell working correctly. At first, she was lucky to get around Haji's Castle a little bit. She learned that she had to work it to get around the barrier on the Chamber Room, too. It was three months before she got out of the castle, and another two months before she could get all the way to the Lake Shore Drive apartment. Unfortunately, when she got there, Howard wasn't there. She assumed he was flying. Disappointed that she couldn't see him, she was also pleased that he was keeping busy so that his time would go faster. Actually, he was in Minneapolis seeing his grandson for the first time, but she didn't know that.

She was in an ethereal state when the bottle was jostled in December. Patty immediately broke the ethereal spell and went into spirit form as the bottle moved up and down and side to side. With the little light that came through the sides of the bottle, Patty could see a male form and it appeared to be dusting off the bottle. Oh, just someone cleaning perhaps, she thought.

"Patty? Can you hear me, sweetheart? If you can, tap on the side twice."

It was Howard! It sounded just like the love of her life! Had he come to rescue her? How was he planning to do that? Maybe he was going to steal her bottle? But Haji would come after him! How could she tell him not to take it? She took a pencil that she had in there with her, blinked it into a metal bar, and rapped on the side of her bottle twice. It chipped the side a little, but she would fix that later. Communicating with Howard was much more important!

"Sweetheart, it's me, Howard. Howard Borden. Honey, I've missed you a lot. Knock twice if you still miss me."

She took the bar again and whacked the side of the bottle. Miss him! He did not know how MUCH she missed him!

"I wish I could get you out of there, sweetheart. You need to see your new …" he stopped, "you need to see my new grandson. His name is Nicholas - Nicholas Howard Borden, and he looks just like my son. Knock if you heard me!"

Oh, how exciting! She tried to picture a newborn baby boy, and Howard holding him in his arms. She wanted him to be holding his son – her son – she could have been pregnant with his child by now. But she knew how important this grandson was to Howard, so she banged on the side again.

"I'm here at a party for some 200th wedding anniversary. I just can't wait for us to have a party for our wedding, and a 1st anniversary would be nice too."

Oh, would that not be lovely! Patty banged on the side again in agreement. She wanted to be Howard's wife, to be there every day for him, to sleep with him, make love to him, make his breakfast and also be his genie. She threw the bar against the side once more.

"Tony and Jeannie have been really good friends. I wouldn't be here without Jeannie."

That is a good thing, Patty thought. He was getting to know the other djinn families in the United States. Then, it wasn't clear, but someone else said something to Howard.

"Honey, I have to go now. I love you! Do you still love me? Knock two times if you do."

Patty picked up the bar again and rapped.

"I hope I see you in June, or maybe I'll get to come and do this again."

She screamed at him, "I love you!" but of course, her spirit form could not be heard outside of the bottle.

"I love you!" She heard Howard's last words, and then it felt as if the bottle was being placed somewhere else.

If Patty's spirit could cry, she would have been in tears at that point. If she had been in human flesh form, she would have been physically aching for him. Her spirit was so depressed, that she spelled herself back into the ethereal state – time went so much faster in that way.

Finding out what day it was, when she spelled herself out of the ethereal state, was not an easy job. Patty devised a listening device, which was placed on the side of the bottle. She would listen carefully whenever it sounded like someone was in the room, and hope that they would talk about the calendar. It was rare, but once she heard:

"Tomorrow is the 14th, sir. In the American human world, couples will be making eyes at one another." Patty didn't know the voice.

"Yes, Valentines Day," she heard Haji's unmistakable voice. "Speaking of that, I have a special job to do tomorrow, regarding one of my couples."

Patty flipped through the calendar quickly, still listening.

"Where are you going?"

"Chicago."

Patty was excited. Haji was going to Chicago on February 14th, and Howard lived in Chicago! Maybe he would bring Howard back to her! Patty stayed in her spirit form. The next day, she heard Haji again, speaking to one of his assistants most likely:

"Borden is fine. He is staying quite faithful to our young genie." Patty was thrilled to hear Haji say that.

"How is he coping?"

"He still wishes for his genie back. But I gave him the date. June 4th."

Patty was overjoyed to have an actual date of release. She debated staying in a spirit form, but the days passed too slowly. She spelled herself back into the ethereal state, where she stayed until Memorial Day.

"What is all the racket over the United States today?" an assistant questioned.

"It is a holiday known as Memorial Day, for remembering those that have died in wars. Hah. They better watch themselves politically – I have heard many rumblings in modern day Baghdad." Haji stated, somewhat worried.

Memorial Day! Patty flipped through her American calendar until she found it: May 28th, 1990. Her eyes lit up – that was only 7 days from her release! She wondered if Howard was still going to come and get her, or if she would be given to another master. Or, worse yet, back to her father. THAT, she felt, would be a fate worse than death. So….a week from today, would she be a married (or about to be married) woman? Or a genie with another master?