The Ruby Bottle Read online

  ‘How did you do that?’ gasped Amber.

  ‘Just a trick I learned,’ he said smugly. ‘Now watch.’ And he clicked his fingers and the work disappeared.

  ‘But –’ Amber cried.

  ‘Didn’t I say that I wouldn’t do your work for you? Well, you saw how the numbers changed. Now it’s your turn to try.’

  Amber stared down at the first problem again, drumming her pencil against her teeth. She tried to remember which numbers the djinn had started with but she couldn’t. She sat back and tossed her pencil onto the desk.

  ‘It’s no use. I can’t remember what you did.’

  ‘Yes, you can,’ said the djinn, moving his hand slowly over the page again. ‘Just take your time. You might see something that helps.’

  Reluctantly Amber retrieved her pencil and looked at the work again. Did some of those numbers just quiver? She wasn’t sure, but she decided that might be a good place to start. She added numbers, and took some away, and at one stage her answer simply disappeared.

  ‘What –’ Amber exclaimed, turning her head to look at the djinn.

  The djinn shrugged. ‘Try again,’ he suggested.

  She did, and before she knew it, the problem was solved.

  ‘Good,’ said the djinn. ‘Now the next one …’

  When Amber finally ruled a line under her finished homework, she realised she had done the last three problems with no help at all from her djinn. He was lounging against her bookshelf with his funny arms crossed and a triumphant grin on his face.

  ‘Is that it?’ he asked. ‘Is that all the homework you had?’

  ‘No,’ she groaned. ‘There’s still spelling to do, and a comprehension sheet. My teacher was in a bad mood this afternoon.’

  ‘Will you need me to help with those?’

  ‘No. I’ll be okay, but I do want to know how you did that. You know, with the numbers and everything.’

  The djinn laughed. ‘You want to know all my secrets, don’t you? Well, I can’t tell you exactly how it is done, but watch this.’

  He waved his short arm through the air and for a moment Amber thought she could make out some numbers, and a few words too. She blinked and they were gone.

  ‘Oh! I thought I just saw …’

  The djinn grinned. ‘You did,’ he said.

  ‘Can you do that again?’ she asked.

  Once again, the djinn scattered words and numbers in the air and Amber watched, mouth gaping, as they dissolved in front of her eyes. For a quick moment, she thought of the possibilities. In spelling … In her number facts tests …

  ‘So you see,’ said the djinn, interrupting her thoughts, ‘my short arm, well, it helps with anything intellectual. But my other arm …’

  The djinn reached out his long arm and held it to Amber’s chest.

  ‘… it’s for matters of the heart.’

  ‘The heart?’

  He nodded earnestly as he looked up into her eyes. ‘Yes. How you feel about things. Your emotions.’

  And for a moment Amber thought of her friend, living so far away, and her heart gave a twist. Looking at her djinn, she wondered if he already knew about Bethany. She wanted to say something but she was suddenly afraid she might cry.

  Then she remembered the diary.

  ‘Oh, I’ve got something to show you,’ she said. She reached over and pulled the diary from under her pillow – her homework, and Bethany, forgotten for the moment.

  ‘Mrs Heggety from next door brought this over for me,’ Amber told him. ‘She said it had something to do with you. Well … not you exactly because I don’t think she knows about you, but she said it’s got something to do with the ruby bottle. Have you seen this before?’ She held up the old book.

  The djinn’s eyes widened. ‘Yes. Yes, I have. That’s the diary that Roger Heggety –’

  ‘Amber, time for bed,’ came a voice from the hallway.

  ‘It’s Mum,’ she whispered. ‘Quick. The bottle –’ But it was too late. The bedroom door swung open.

  ‘Is everything okay, Amber?’ asked Mum, looking at her daughter’s startled face.

  ‘Yes. I … you frightened me, that’s all.’

  ‘Sorry. You had the door closed.’

  ‘Yeah. I … ah … I was doing my homework, and I could hear the TV in the background. Sorry.’

  ‘That’s alright. Did you manage to finish it? Your homework, I mean?’

  ‘Yes.’ Liar.

  ‘Would you like me to check it? It was that new maths, wasn’t it?’

  ‘Yes. No … I mean, it’s okay. I’ve got the hang of it now. You don’t have to check it. Thanks anyway.’

  She waited for her mother to leave. But she didn’t. Instead she stood, glancing about the room as if she were looking for something but didn’t know what. She picked up the photo frame Amber kept on her desk. It was a picture of Amber and Bethany in the Christmas play last year. Bethany wore robes and was cradling a doll while Amber was dressed as an angel.

  ‘I wonder how Bethany and her mum are getting on,’ her mother said as she gave the frame a wipe with her sleeve. She put it back on the desk next to the diary. ‘Oh, is this the book Mrs Heggety lent you? You’ve done a wonderful job cleaning it up.’

  Amber’s hand flew to the book. What if her mother saw how different it looked now? She’d want to know why. But her mother didn’t seem to notice.

  ‘Yeah. I thought I might read some of it before I go to bed.’

  ‘Well, it’s almost bedtime now. Perhaps you’d better leave it for another night.’

  Amber pushed the book away from her. ‘Okay,’ she said as she stood and kissed her mother on the cheek. ‘Good night. See you in the morning.’

  Mum looked into Amber’s honey-brown eyes, as if searching for a secret. Then she shook her head slowly, leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. ‘Good night, Amber Star. Sleep tight.’ And she left, leaving the door wide open.

  Amber Star? She hadn’t been called that in years. She waited until she was sure her mother had gone back downstairs, then began frantically searching for the djinn.

  Something tugged at her hair. ‘Looking for me?’ said a voice above her.

  There he was, sitting up on top of her bookshelf. He gripped the shelf with his big flat hand and lowered himself towards the desk. Amber stared as his arm stretched until his bottom touched the wooden surface.

  ‘That’s amazing,’ she whispered in awe. ‘I wish I could do that.’ At netball.

  The djinn looked smug. ‘Yes, it can be useful at times. Now, I’ve been out of my bottle for long enough,’ he said, ‘and you need to get to bed. The diary will still be here tomorrow.’ He looked up into her eyes. ‘You know, it won’t disappear. Not now.’

  He knows. He knows what happened today with the diary. But there was no way …

  The djinn smiled. ‘Trust me, Amber. That diary knows you will take care of it. You’ve already proved that.’ He shook himself and a thin cloud of red dust puffed around him as he slipped back into his bottle.

  ‘Don’t forget the stopper …’

  The words reverberated in Amber’s head as she pushed the stopper into the neck of the bottle.

  Chapter Eleven

  ‘Well done, Amber,’ said Ms Kruger, peering over her reading glasses. ‘Homework sums all correct for a change, and ten out of ten for your number facts. That gives you a star for maths. Your mother will be pleased. I was just telling her this morning how you needed to work a little harder.’

  Marissa snorted. Ms Kruger glared at her before swinging her eyes back to Amber.

  ‘Now, I just hope you’ve done as well with the rest of your homework.’

  The rest of her homework? She hadn’t done the rest of her homework. She hadn’t even thought about it. Her insides turned upside down.

  ‘But,’ said Ms Kruger, snapping her mark book shut, ‘it’s almost home time now, so I’ll mark the rest of the homework tomorrow. Daniel, hand these books back, please.’
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br />   Amber sagged with relief and when Daniel dropped her book on her desk, she quickly shoved it into her tidy tray.

  ‘Now,’ said Ms Kruger, glancing up at the clock. ‘We’ve just got time to start this new book from the library. It’s a wonderful story about a dog called Marley. Who here has a dog …? Yes, Rachel, what sort of dog have you got…?’

  As Ms Kruger droned on, Amber found herself drifting away – away to places where sorcerers lived and magic was commonplace. Places where genies and djinns live in bottles of red and green …

  ‘Perhaps you can tell us, Amber,’ said Ms Kruger, her voice pulling Amber out of her mystical daydream.

  She looked around blankly. ‘Ah … in a bottle,’ she answered before she realised what she’d said.

  As the class roared with laughter, Amber felt herself blush. Even her ears felt hot and she tried to cover them with her short hair. How could she have said that? Ms Kruger, arms folded, glared at her.

  ‘Bottle?’ she said, arching an eyebrow. ‘What is this obsession with bottles? You, young lady, need to pay more attention in class. Just because you got all your maths right doesn’t excuse you for not listening. If I remember rightly, you didn’t do too well in English last term, so tonight you can write me a short report on taking care of puppies. And just so you know, they do not sleep in bottles.’

  Then Ms Kruger looked around the class, her eyes narrowing. ‘Actually, I think you can all do this. I wasn’t going to give any homework, but this will be a good exercise for you all. At least half a page about taking care of puppies. I want it on my desk first thing tomorrow.’

  The class groaned, but Ms Kruger held up a warning hand. ‘If you’ve been listening,’ she said, and looked pointedly at Amber, ‘you’ll have no trouble with this. And you can get information from the internet if you’ve got a computer at home.’

  Someone hissed. Amber turned to see Rachel scowling back at her. And Marissa was thunderous. She looked away and saw Ricco already making notes, his tongue poking out the corner of his mouth and his dark curls falling over his eyes. He didn’t seem too worried.

  That night, as Amber connected to the internet, she wished she had a computer in her room. She imagined her djinn sitting on her shoulder, waving his short arm about as he helped her with the research. But the only computer in the house was here in the lounge and there was no way she could have the djinn down here.

  ‘Can I help?’ Dad said, coming up behind her just as she googled caring for puppies. He peered over her shoulder. ‘What are you looking for?’ he asked.

  ‘We have to write a report about caring for puppies,’ Amber told him. ‘But I don’t know which website to go to.’ She scrolled down through the choices.

  Dad dragged a chair over. ‘Well, I’ll give you a hand, but I won’t do it for you,’ he said.

  Amber smiled. That’s just what her djinn had said.

  When she had finished and printed out her report, Dad said, ‘Do you want to do some surfing? On the net, I mean?’

  ‘No thanks, Dad,’ she said without looking up. ‘I’ve still got some other homework to do.’ Last night’s homework. But she was thinking of the ruby bottle and the small leather book she so badly wanted to read.

  As she trudged up the stairs, she heard her mother say, ‘Do you think there’s something wrong at school, Peter?’

  Well, there was always something wrong at school, she thought. But everything was just fine upstairs in her bedroom.

  Then her mother said, ‘There’s been something a bit strange about her behaviour lately.’

  Was there? She caught some of her father’s reply as she reached her bedroom: ‘… Bethany leaving … new friends …’

  Before she could hear more, she closed the door. Although she wanted to release her djinn and read some of Mr Heggety’s diary, she decided she’d better finish her homework first. She didn’t want to be in trouble again, not after what happened today.

  Later, when all her work was done, Amber settled herself in bed and pulled the stopper from her ruby bottle.

  ‘You don’t need any help with homework tonight?’ the djinn asked.

  ‘No, it’s all done. I thought I might read some of the diary.’

  His eyes lit up. ‘Can I sit on your shoulder? While you read?’ he asked.

  ‘Sure,’ she said as she propped herself up against her pillows. She glanced out the window, down at Mrs Heggety’s place. It was dark now, but she could see a dull glow coming from somewhere inside the house. Shadows fell eerily across the backyard, causing Amber to shiver.

  ‘You need to keep an eye out for her,’ said the djinn.

  Amber cricked her neck to look at him. ‘What do you mean?’

  The djinn just gave a shrug. ‘Come on,’ he said. ‘Let’s read this diary.’

  ‘I will. In a minute. But first, tell me why I need to watch out for Mrs Heggety.’

  He sighed impatiently. ‘Remember what I told you about it being written in history?’ he said. ‘About how one day I would come to an amber star …?’

  ‘Why did you call me that?’ she interrupted.

  ‘Call you what?’

  ‘An amber star.’

  ‘Isn’t that what your mother calls you?’

  ‘Sometimes. Not now, though. She used to when I was little. Except for last night she hasn’t called me that for ages. But you called me that last Sunday, remember? When you said something about helping an amber star.’

  ‘That’s what you are – a star,’ he said.

  ‘Hmmph. As if. The only thing I’m a star at is making myself look stupid at school. Have I told you about Rachel and Marissa –’

  ‘Never mind them,’ he said, holding up his hand to stop her. ‘Didn’t you get a maths star today?’

  ‘How did you know that?’

  But the djinn just shook his head and tapped the leather cover of the book impatiently. ‘You know, this book looks as good as new,’ he said. ‘You did a great job repairing it.’

  Guilt rushed back and threatened to overwhelm her. So he did know. How?

  She wanted to ask him, but once again he tapped impatiently on the leather cover. She opened the diary …

  I decided immediately that I needed to leave the city. I was sure all eyes were upon me as I rushed through streets and down alleyways.

  I paused only at a stall that sold stationery. There, on a table, was this diary. I am not sure why, but it seemed important that I purchase it. I quickly counted out some coins and slipped the small diary into my pocket before continuing on my way.

  When I arrived back at my lodgings, I asked the landlord to find a boy with a donkey to carry my possessions to the train station. Then I set about packing.

  I carefully placed my purchases from the past few days into small crates, but I kept the ruby bottle, and the diary, aside. I would carry them with me.

  ‘The boy is here,’ called the landlord. ‘The boy with the donkey.’

  I went outside and began to load my goods onto the donkey’s back. The day was beginning to fade and I was glad that I would have the cover of darkness when I left.

  Then I heard a crash. I ran back inside and saw billowing robes disappear through the window. Someone had been in here. A small table was upturned; other furniture had been disturbed as well.

  The ruby bottle! Where was it? Had someone stolen it?

  I searched, hoping I wasn’t too late.

  But there it was – hidden behind a cushion. As I reached for it, I could swear the bottle was quivering, as if in need of comfort. I settled myself cross-legged on the floor, took it onto my lap and rubbed it gently with the edge of my sleeve. Then, very carefully, I prised the glass stopper from its neck, eager to discover what it contained.

  Right before my eyes rose a cloud of red, and I watched in awe as it settled into a shape. This, I decided, was what the intruder had been looking for, and I was thankful I had managed to save it.

  Remembering from my schooldays the tales o
f the genies in their bottles, this shape was not exactly as I expected. For a start, this … creature … was red, and it was not much bigger than my hand. It had a large bottom and its body tapered up to a small head. Looking at it, I realised it was almost the same shape as the bottle from which it had come.

  The creature looked up at me with red beady eyes and I watched, amazed, as a long, thin arm unfurled. A hand, large and flat, reached out to me and I suddenly wondered if it meant me harm.

  But when it touched me, I felt safe; no longer afraid. It smiled up at me and said, ‘Greetings, Roger Heggety. I am the djinn of the ruby bottle. I have been waiting for you.’

  Amber lowered the book to her knees and looked at the djinn. ‘He’s written this book about you,’ she said. ‘He must have thought you were important to do that.’

  ‘Perhaps I am,’ said the djinn. ‘After all, wherever I go, it’s for a good reason.’

  ‘So,’ said Amber thoughtfully, ‘that means you’re here – now – for a good reason?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘And it’s got something to do with me? And Mrs –’

  There was a knock at the door. Amber froze. The djinn disappeared into the bottle beside her.

  ‘Bedtime,’ called Dad. ‘Time to turn out that light.’

  ‘Okay. Goodnight, Dad,’ she called back. She closed the diary and slipped it under her pillow. At least her father never seemed to worry if her bedroom door was closed.

  ‘Don’t forget the stopper …’ she heard inside her head, almost like an echo in a cave. How did he do that?

  She put the bottle on her bedside table and switched off the lamp. Looking out into the night, she could see that a light was on, somewhere in Mrs Heggety’s house, and wondered if she was still up watching television. Then Amber nestled down under her doona and closed her eyes. Tomorrow was Wednesday – her least favourite day. They had PE on Wednesdays, and Amber hated PE. She just hoped Mrs May had forgotten the out-of-bounds business.