Patron Saint {Pippa}

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He smiled and shook his head lightly. Either that smile was in sick anticipation of letting her know that he ate something she couldn’t, wouldn’t buy.... like human flesh or she was missing something obvious.

“My body doesn’t work like you. I look like you, but that’s because I choose to. My true body is just a floating mass of… uh, well, nothing, which is how I followed you.” he explained... Pippa supposed this meant that he didn’t anything. Then why was he so eager about dinner?

“I’m a Djinn, Pippa, you just tell me what you want, I’ll make it.” Aixa grinned at her, ”So you know, I could make you cupcakes or cakes. Human females like baked treats, yes?”

Aixa gave her a determined look. Wait a minute. Was he offering to wiggle his fingers and make something appear out of thin air?! No thanks! She’d rather not witness something that ought to be impossible. Regular, human food was good for her. Nothing is free, something always comes with a price. She did NOT want to end up with the bill and no money.... so to speak.

“Eh... n-” But this was someone who not only survived an encounter with a werewolf, he DATED one. Did she really want to say no to him? “Actually yeah, cupcakes would be great for dinner! Favorite thing to eat for dinner actually- especially with sprinkles! Heheh..”

She laughed a little nervously. Her life had officially turned upside down. She was volunteering to eat mystical cupcakes for dinner that a super powerful being created out of thin air so that his ex boyfriend wouldn’t come barging in to have her for dinner. One step at a time... one step at a time...

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Why did it still come as a shock that she was wary over him making her dinner? Aixa wavered, watching as she had some mental battle with herself. Sure, he would admit that it was a little strange; a bizarre man appears in the kitchen, turns into a cat, and offers to make magical brownies or cupcakes. If he were in her shoes, it would seem a little fishy. Or a lot fishy – he didn’t know, he just knew that there would be some definite fish. “I didn’t mean to scare you again,” he mumbled, taking a step away from her again and dropping his gaze to the floor.

He needed to learn what set the girl off – he didn’t want her to hate him. Or be scared of him, which was almost as bad. Aixa wasn’t a stranger to having people be afraid of him. The Balloon Man at the park, the Doorman, and even people that he tried to engage in conversation. And despite all of Aixa’s years and all of the faults and breaks in his proverbial heart, he still hadn’t learned to turn off his feelings completely. Despite all attempts at appearing apathetic, he just wasn’t cut out for loneliness and he wasn’t cut out for friends.

Which Aixa thought was a shame, really, because all he wanted was a friend. Wasn’t that what everybody wanted? Certainly many humans wanted a friend, needed a friend, but Jinn weren’t supposed to. They were supposed to be used to people using them for their powers, used to humanity’s rejection, but Aixa wasn’t. Again, Aixa thought it was a shame, because he figured life would be much easier if he weren’t so desperate to be human.

“Eh… n-”

No. She was going to say no, much to the Djinn’s distress. He nodded and began to glance around for the aforementioned food items. “Actually yeah,” she said, making Aixa freeze and he felt another stirring of hope rise in his chest, “cupcakes would be great for dinner! Favorite thing to eat for dinner actually – especially with sprinkles! Heheh…”

He looked up at her, the feeling of hope dampened and promptly spat on. She was only agreeing because she was still afraid of him. But maybe if she didn’t notice that Aixa noticed, maybe if he pretended like he believed her, maybe they could be friends. With that optimistic and not very realistic idea in mind, his faltering smile was replaced with a large grin.

“You’ve got it!” he cheered. He pondered briefly and thought back to the thousands of recipes that he had memorized trying to impress Oliver. Deciding on one – a chocolate one with some sort of ‘scratch’ icing, whatever that mean to a human – Aixa grinned, his fingers glowing a pale blue as he spun the cupcakes into existence.

It was far from magic, but Pippa didn’t seem like the type of girl who wanted to hear the science behind it. Aixa put the sprinkles on top of them for her. “There,” he said nervously, stepping back several paces so that Pippa could comfortably get the cupcakes without having to worry about Aixa being within reaching distance. “I don’t know how good it’s going to be. Maybe you can teach me how to make your favorite things the human way,” he suggested tentatively.

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“I didn’t mean to scare you again,” Pippa thought he said, as he backed away, looking a bit disappointed. Pippa bit her lip as she contemplated his offer.


“Eh… n- Actually yeah, cupcakes would be great for dinner! Favorite thing to eat for dinner actually- especially with sprinkles! Heheh...”

Her nervous laugh was the only sound in the room for a few seconds. She hoped it sounded convincing, though she knew it wasn’t. If she couldn’t cooperate to his wishes, whatever secret intention he may or may not have, she was in a lot of trouble. His sudden face brightened with a broad grin.

”You’ve got it! he cheered. Oh dear goodness...

Pippa braced herself for what untold unexpectedness was about to occur. Would the cupcakes simply appear or where her ingredients come flying out? Then before her eyes his fingers began to glow. Oh no. Nononononono...no no. With a squeak she covered her eyes before Aixa joined one of the many images that dwell in her nightmares.

”There.” Aixa said nervously, Pippa opened one eye at a time.
”Oh..” she exhaled. She was still alive. And completely fine.

There before her were cupcakes. Just as she described, with sprinkles. Well what did she expect? He did as he said he would. Heaven forbid they weren’t poisoned or anything. But he was watching her. She couldn’t ask for cupcakes and not eat them.

“I don’t know how good it’s going to be. Maybe you can teach me how to make your favorite things the human way,” he said, almost looking like a kid who was trying to coax a stray cat to some milk.

She had to be brave. Eat the unexplainable food. She didn’t know where it came from or if it was really food, but she was going to have to eat them. Anytime now.

”Thank you.” Pippa blurted, before very forcefully walking to the cupcakes.

They seemed to stare up at her innocently, begging to be enjoyed. Yet there was still some sinister plot lurking beneath the icing. Excited to kill her.

No.

Positive thoughts. Think positive thoughts.

Very carefully she picked up one of the cupcakes, the situation becoming more and more real as the cupcake came closer and closer to her face. With a prayer that her family would not miss her and live long happy lives, she took a bite.

It was delicious. That kind of cupcake that puts you in an instant bliss. If she had bought this at the pastry store, she would be swaying back and forth from pure joy the flavor provided. But this wasn’t from the pastry store and she hadn’t swallowed yet. Pippa nodded with a smile and chewed and chewed. A slight nervous chuckle before she realized that there was nothing she could do to not swallow. So with a final goodbye to all that was good and natural, she swallowed. Nothing happened. She was well! Hallelujah.

So... Pippa was just sitting there, holding a bitten into cupcake, and an unthanked genie waiting for approval. This was awkward.

”It’s delicious.” Pippa admitted, though less than enthusiastic. Though previously traumatized, she did feel bad that she still thought him a murderer. Mostly it was because of his pouty look of disappointment. ”Thank you.”

Pippa Pettywood wasn’t sure if she trusted him yet, but knew her death did not involve cupcakes now.

”You said you were young, how old are you anyway?” Pippa figured if she stirred up some conversation, maybe she could understand better what her situation really was. This was probably a bad idea, but she dismayingly reminded herself that knowledge is power. Bitterly she countered that thought with the fact that power does not provide courage.

Pippa took another bite out of the cupcake, part of her unable to resist the soft spongy texture and the other part afraid to offend its maker.

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Aixa watched her with wide eyes from across the kitchen. He was levitating a little less than two meters off the ground while he sat cross-legged mid-air. She seemed to be vaguely amazed that she was still alive, but Aixa decided not to question her about it. Obviously she wasn’t used his presence or his rather mediocre powers. Hopefully soon she would at least stop flinching every time his energy began to manifest itself. Perhaps it wouldn’t be possible for them to be friends, but hell, at this point he would settle with her not cringing every time he took a step towards her.

“Thank you,” she said, walking rather reluctantly towards the cupcakes. He widened his eyes at her and tilted his head curiously. Pippa seemed to be a rather funny individual. He watched some more as she examined the cupcake critically. A slow smile crept on his face, exposing his canines. What did she think the cupcake was going to do? Grow arms and slap her across the face? His smile widened a little and he contemplated playing a very mean trick on her, but he decided against it. As socially awkward as he was, he still knew that one did not tease a ’fraidy cat.

Finally, she bit into it and swallowed it. His energy buzzed again, but he managed to keep himself from visibly spreading apart. Sometimes keeping the form of a humanoid got a bit too much for him and he ended up kind of… well, separating. It had a tendency to mildly creep out whomever he was talking to, so if someone else got creeped out, then he could only imagine Pippa’s reaction. The poor girl would probably faint or throw up or both and maybe both at the same time. Either way, it sounded very unpleasant and he decided that he would just keep his form.

Still, she was just standing and holding the cupcake. He waited patiently although he didn’t know what for. Perhaps for her to tell him that he was a terrible baker and that clearly Oliver hadn’t taught him enough. Or perhaps he was waiting for her to tell him that this was all too creepy and he needed to leave. Or maybe for her to grin and give him a thumbs-up. And maybe a hug, although he knew he was far from the ‘hug’ stage. He pondered, wondering if he ever really got to the hugging stage of a human before.

No. He had massaged the pain away from Oliver’s leg, and maybe he had awkwardly hugged Leo, and certainly he’d never been hugged by Charlemagne.

“It’s delicious,” she said finally. “Thank you.”

It was less than he had anticipated, but he figured that it wasn’t a particularly bad reaction. Just a very unenthusiastic one. And also with a lot less hugging than he had hoped for, but Aixa’s hopes and wishes were a bit unachievable anyway, even if he was a Djinn.

“You said you were young, how old are you?” Pippa asked.

His feet touched the ground hesitantly as he stood. “One thousand two hundred and forty three years,” he answered automatically. It was a rather odd question; no one had ever asked how old he was before. “But that is a very small number to the Jinn. I believe the human equivalent would be…” he paused, thinking and tapping his chin. “Fifteen, perhaps? I’m not sure.”

And anyway, he didn’t like to think of himself in human terms. The humans didn’t like him and they never tried to put themselves in Jinn terms. He watched as she took another bite of the cupcake and grinned at her. “I’m glad that you liked the cupcake. I was worried that you wouldn’t like me because I’m not human. Hey, Pippa, what do humans do after dinner?” he asked cheerfully, looking around her apartment curiously.

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“One thousand two hundred and forty three years,” Aixa replied, no hesitation. Pippa just looked at him. He was becoming more alien to her the more she learned. She must seem so insignificant to him. Like a bug. ”But that is a very small number to the Jinn. I believe the human equivalent would be... fifteen perhaps? I’m not sure.”

He was so young for someone so old. Pippa blinked. Her life was in the hands of a teenage genie. Hopefully he didn’t get bored with his bug.

”Wait- do you have parents then?” Imagine Mum and Dad coming in, looking for their son’s kidnapper. Oh yeah, I’m your son’s new mistress. Ay ay ay.

”I’m glad that you liked the cupcake. I was worried that you wouldn’t like me because I’m not human. Hey, Pippa, what do humans do after dinner?” he asked cheerfully, looking around her apartment curiously.

Ok.... entertainment. She put the cupcake down and jumped around him into the living room. The TV usually was a safe bet. She didn’t have the latest Nintendo game system, the Wii- but that was because she was so clumsy. After breaking her sister’s window... and wiimote, she had sworn off it.

”Um... if there isn’t any work to do- we relax a-and watch TV.” she pulled out her small DVD collection, and the few gamecube games she had, ”Um... we also have board games and cards....”

It was a lot easier entertaining someone she knew. Any given second this guy could whip out some crazy scheme to entertain himself... like turning *her* into a cat. Hopefully she could keep him happy.

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Aixa grinned at her question and laughed quietly. “No, I don’t have parents,” he answered, wondering why she was asking so many questions about him. Sure, they were going to be spending a lot of time together, but he’d had a lot of masters before and none of them tried to get to know him. “The Jinn aren’t created like humans. We have Caretakers, which is an older Jinn taking care of a newly created one,” he explained, a small frown forming on his face as he spoke of his Caretaker. “I think it would be nice to have parents, yes?” he asked, smiling at her.

He giggled as she jumped around him and into the living room. He followed her and plopped down on her sofa, grinning widely at her as she ran through the things that humans did. “At my old flat it was only covered in books. I like yours. It’s much more… human,” he said, wriggling his bare toes. “Oh? What is a bored game? Is it when you play something that isn’t very entertaining? Once I had a master who tried to get me to play something called ‘chess’. Is that a bored game?” he questioned.

Wait! It was the night, yes? And humans slept! “Sleep!” he said excitedly, and he nearly turned into a cat before remembering her request of staying human. So instead he curled up on the couch and smiled with determination, still trying to leave enough room for her to sit. He doubted she would want to sit with him, but it was only polite. “When I was younger,” he said, his smile lessening somewhat, “my Caretaker would tell me stories about humans.”

“I miss her, sometimes,” he said, yawning. “But maybe we can be friends, so I won’t have to miss her as much,” Aixa shrugged and shivered, curling up even more to generate more body heat.

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“No, I don’t have parents,” he seemed a little confused with her question, Pippa shivered. Half-way relieved no one was going to attack her for housing him, half-way unsettled with how... alien he was. “The Jinn aren’t created like humans. We have Caretakers, which is an older Jinn taking care of a newly created one, I think it would be nice to have parents, yes?”
Pippa returned his smile with a nervous one.

”Well- normal people are usually really unhappy if they don’t have a parental figure in their life. It can really damage a person emotionally.” Pippa chirped. She was a little curious about how Jinn were made, if they were like humans and had parents who abandoned them... or if they just appeared out of thin air. But maybe that was more than she was willing to take in at once.

His giggle unnerved her- though it was perfectly innocent and he hurried to sit on her couch. Deep breath, keep walking. He isn’t going to kill you... right now anyway.

He just sort of sat there, grinning and staring as she listed some things they could do. It made her nervous. Aixa seemed to have such high expectations.

“At my old flat it was only covered in books. I like yours. It’s much more… human,” he said, wriggling his bare toes.

”Some people have lots of books too.” Pippa said, sitting on the floor. ”I have lots of books, but they’re in my bedroom.

“Oh? What is a bored game? Is it when you play something that isn’t very entertaining? Once I had a master who tried to get me to play something called ‘chess’. Is that a bored game?” Aixa gave her a curious look.

”They aren’t boring- well some are I guess, but some people find them entertaining. They’re games played on a board. So chess is one.” Pippa said, she couldn’t help but smile at how he actually seemed to believe that people played games that weren’t fun.

Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Aixa’s eyes lit up, she bit her lip nervously. What now?

“Sleep!” he said excitedly, he seemed to be about to do something then curled up on the couch. He had a smile of determination. Like sleep was some kind of game. In any case, he was obviously staying for the night. This could be a good thing, maybe if he was always around he wouldn’t be... appearing at random. Yeaaah.... he was probably going to make her a nervous wreck... more so than normal.

“When I was younger,” he said, his smile lessening somewhat, “my Caretaker would tell me stories about humans.”

It was so strange to think of, humans being discussed. Sure she was a firm believer in aliens.. because obviously life would be too good to be true if mankind were the only intelligent life form in existence.

“I miss her, sometimes,” he said, yawning. “But maybe we can be friends, so I won’t have to miss her as much,”

He was dozing off. She was going to have a genie asleep in her living room. He shivered. He was cold. If he was uncomfortable he might take it out on Pippa. It didn’t matter if she was uncomfortable with Aixa staying overnight, she wasn’t about to kick him out.

”Th-there’s a blanket draped on the couch if you’re cold.” Pippa said.

Pippa was no where near ready to sleep, she had eaten a few bites of cupcake for “dinner” and the sun had just barely set. But maybe she could gather her senses if he were unconscious.

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“Well – normal people are usually really unhappy if they don’t have a parental figure in their life. It can really damage a person emotionally,” she said. Aixa considered this for a moment. Was he upset that he didn’t have a parental figure in his life? Surely the rest of the Jinn would say no, because they were content with being alone. But Aixa was different. All his life he had struggled to make friends or woo people and just be liked. So, yes, he was rather upset that he hadn’t had someone in his life to take his hand and lead him through. And perhaps he was emotionally damaged. He was lonely enough for it.

“Oh,” he said, still smiling because he didn’t want her to think he was mad or sad. “I think that maybe the Jinn are like ‘normal people’, too,” he informed her pensively as he sat on the couch.

After he asked about the ‘bored’ games, she smiled at him. He returned it shyly; he was happy that she seemed to be at least warming up to him enough to smile at his mistakes, but unsure if he wanted her to be smiling at them, anyway. Still, there was no harm done and it hadn’t hurt his feelings. “Chess is boring, too, so it’s a board bored game,” he said enthusiastically. “I think that humans have a lot of fun. They have friends and games and they can enjoy music. I wish that I had friends,” he said, and then started laughing quietly. “Get it? I wish?” he snickered. He blinked and shook his head slightly, recognizing that he was beginning to ramble now that he was tired. “The Jinn don’t have any games, I think. When I was little, I used to make sandstorms, but I lived in the desert so there wasn’t much else,” he continued.

“Th-there’s a blanket draped on the couch if you’re cold.”

Aixa groped around for the blanket and pulled it on him, stretching his arms and using them as a pillow. Still, he remained semi-awake, quite determined that he would make an even bigger fool out of himself before he fell asleep. As though he needed to ramble in a sleep-deprived to do that. He did a well enough job being wide-awake.

“I’m kind of scared, too,” he said. “Of you. I’m always scared of how people will react to having power. I’m scared that people will abuse me again, and I’m scared of never finding a friend because of how different I am,” he told her with another yawn. “So it’s okay to be scared of me, too, but it isn’t easy for me either.”

With another little mutter of something about peacocks or peanut butter, Aixa nuzzled his arms and went to sleep.

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”They aren’t boring- well some are I guess, but some people find them entertaining. They’re games played on a board. So chess is one.” Pippa said, she couldn’t help but smile at how he actually seemed to believe that people played games that weren’t fun.

”Chess is boring, too, so it’s a board bored game,” he said, Pippa breathed a laugh. Her father loved chess. “I think that humans have a lot of fun. They have friends and games and they can enjoy music. I wish that I had friends,” he started laughing quietly, Pippa looked at him curiously. What was funny about wishing for friends?

“Get it? I wish?” he snickered. Oh... because he was a genie...

“The Jinn don’t have any games, I think. When I was little, I used to make sandstorms, but I lived in the desert so there wasn’t much else,” he continued, Pippa tried to pretend she didn’t hear that.

He announced it was time for bed and shivered. She offered him the blanket and he accepted, pulling it onto himself. He was using his arms for a pillow. Pippa ought to offer him one... but that might wake him up. She started edging away.

“I’m kind of scared, too,” he said, startling her. Mostly because she was trying to sneak away. “Of you. I’m always scared of how people will react to having power. I’m scared that people will abuse me again, and I’m scared of never finding a friend because of how different I am,” he told her with another yawn. “So it’s okay to be scared of me, too, but it isn’t easy for me either.”

”Aixa... you dated a werewolf, a friend should be easy peasy.” Pippa said, trying to imagine abusing him. What kind of idiot would try to attempt that?! ”A-and...”

He was asleep.

”I hope you really are a friend...” Pippa sighed, ”...Not some psycho who wants to kill me.”