A Reluctant Spirit: Truncated Spirits
By Ingrid Halb

Ken finds the magical vessel in a junkyard while looking for car parts. What a great opportunity to wish for a new ride that will make him look good! Now then, what were those instructions again?

Ken Newland was a slacker. At thirty years of age, he still had not held a job for more than six months. Subsequently, he had great difficulty in maintaining a place to stay. He would spend a few months at a time living with various friends and girlfriends until they had enough and invariably kicked him out. More often than not, he would wind up living in his parents’ basement. While this was always a blow to his manhood, he would stay as long as his parents let him. This was primarily because his father had a large well-stocked garage which allowed Ken to indulge his one true passion; cars.

Ken lived and breathed all things automotive. He had a particular fondness for small Japanese sports cars. Unfortunately, his inability to maintain a steady income meant that his current ride was an aging four-door Toyota Corolla with an exhaust leak and a transmission that tended to slip out of fourth gear. This was why he was spending his Saturday afternoon at Mel’s Pick-A-Part Automotive Recycling Yard looking for replacement parts, when he stumbled across his very own genie.

“You’re a what?” asked Ken.

“A spirit obligated to enable the flow of magical energy whenever cued by a properly formatted wish statement offered by the true possessor of my vessel,” answered the portly little man.

“And that means what?” Ken asked, still confused.

“If you make a wish, I have to make it happen,” the little man simplified.

“You mean you’re like a genie and I get three wishes?” Ken asked excitedly.

“Like a genie yes, but the number of wishes is technically limited only by the current levels of magical energy,” the little man lectured. “For instance, if one were to make a wish involving a previously incarnated…”

Ken’s attention began to drift, as the little man seemed to drone on endlessly. A genie! And three wishes! It was like some sort of fairytale. And if years of watching Disney movies had taught him anything, it was that fairytales always worked out well.

“…and three qualifiers,” the little man continued. “Understand?”

Ken smiled and nodded.

“Good,” the little man said. “But I must warn you, wishes never…”

The little man sure liked to talk, Ken thought. What should he wish for first? It should be something really hot for his car. Some trick wheels would be good, maybe a new paintjob. Of course, the engine needs work. Some headers and a turbocharger would do the trick. That would mean he would need a tougher block with higher compression heads. Then he would need some way to hook all that power to the road. Definitely a stiffer transmission and some fat tires were needed. How many wishes was that? There had to be a way to get all that. Maybe he should just wish for a total new ride and see where that got him.

“…and that is why it is vitally important that you never make any wishes,” finished the little man, thinking that he had really gotten through to Ken.

“I wish I had a total upgrade on my ride so that I look good and turn some heads when I drive by!” Ken blurted out.

The little man’s jaw dropped open in surprise, but he had no choice in the matter.

“As you wish,” he intoned solemnly, then looked at Ken and shook his head in amazement.

Ken stood there smiling and looking around for his car to appear.

“So where’s my car?” he finally asked.

“Probably out in the parking lot,” the little man answered.

“No, I mean my new car,” Ken insisted earnestly.

“First off, the magic hasn’t even started working,” the little man lectured. “And secondly, we don’t know you are getting a new car. Magic is tricky and always does the unexpected. Yes, it is a guarantee that the wish will adhere to your exact words, but the question remains as to whether or not that will result in…’

The little man’s voice just seemed to go on and on. So, his new car was out in the parking lot. It would be good to finally get a little respect on the streets. Some nice hot wheels would be just the trick to making his name on the avenue.

“…so we’ll just have to wait and see,” the little man finished.

Just then, a ripple seemed to pass through the junkyard, causing Ken to shudder.

“What was that?” he asked.

“That was the magic. The parameters of this wish have been set,” explained the little man. “Apparently, there is no need to change locations to fulfill this wish.”

“So my new car is out in the parking lot?” Ken asked hopefully.

“Look I just explained… Oh, never mind,” sighed the little man. “Yes, your car is out in the parking lot.”

“Wahoo!” Ken shouted and grabbing his tools, he rushed out to the parking lot.

The little man watched him go and tried to read the lines of magical energy flowing around Ken. He never did get to read all of them before Ken disappeared from view.

Strange fellow, the little man thought. He never even took the vessel with him when he left. Hopefully, it would all work out all right but the little man had a bad feeling about this wish. The pattern of magic looked more like an ongoing magical effect rather than a straightforward transformation.

The little man would have to wait for Ken to come back before he could tell what had happened. If he came back that is, and if nobody else found the little man’s vessel first. The little man shrugged his shoulders and disappeared.

Ken ran out into the parking lot breathless from excitement and exertion. His heart sank when he looked at where he had parked and saw his old beat up Toyota still sitting there.

“I knew it was too good to be true,” he said aloud to no one in particular and got in to drive back home dejectedly.

It soon became apparent that there was something decidedly odd going on with this car ride. People kept staring at him. People in other cars, people walking down the road, people just sitting on steps and bus stops. They all turned their heads to watch as Ken drove by. Well, mostly it was just the guys. Including this one guy, whose girlfriend slapped him after he turned to watch Ken. It was strange. The car seemed to be the same scratched and dented old Toyota that blew smoke when he accelerated yet he was getting all this attention. He could not figure it out.

That was until he stopped at a traffic light near a modernistic office building with silvered glass windows. At first, Ken thought he was seeing the reflection of another old beat up Toyota, but he soon recognized the distinctive dings and scrapes of his own car. It was his reflection that threw him off. For the driver, as clearly shown in the mirrored windows, was a gorgeous blonde woman wearing a tube top. He moved a few body parts experimentally and the woman in the reflection mimicked his movements perfectly.

Ken looked quickly down at himself and confirmed that he was still male, and still wearing the grubby t-shirt and jeans he had when he left the house this morning. His rearview mirror on the other hand, showed the same feminine reflection the building had. She was also in both side mirrors and the mirror clipped onto the sun visor. He had to double-check himself but only his reflection had changed.

Blue eyes, he thought looking into his rear view mirror. She has beautiful blue eyes. He shook his head experimentally and watched the long blonde hair brush against the exposed shoulders of the woman in the mirror. She was startlingly beautiful. He was so engrossed with studying his reflection that he failed to notice when the light changed. He also did not notice the first horn blast from the car stuck behind him at the light. He did notice the second blast but did not quite react until he heard the man behind him yell.

“Let’s go, you dizzy broad!” the man behind him yelled. “You can check your makeup when you get home!”

With a start, Ken drove through the intersection and pulled over into a parking spot. The car behind him roared past hurling a gender specific derogatory comment at him. Ken waited a couple of minutes trying to get his bearings. A man walking past on the sidewalk winked at him. Ken gulped then looked once more at the female reflection in the mirror.

“Everyone thinks I’m a woman,” he said aloud to no one in particular.

_____ o _____

“Hello Ken,” the little man said pleasantly when Ken returned to the junkyard the next day.

“What did you do?” Ken demanded.

“Excuse me?” the little man said, confused.

“What did you do?” Ken repeated slowly.

“I didn’t do anything. What are you talking about?” the little man replied.

“Liar! Everyone things I look like a hot blonde chick,” accused Ken.

The little man looked Ken over very closely. He looked the same as when they met yesterday. That might even be the same t-shirt.

“You don’t look like a blonde woman to me,” the little man noted.

“Everyone else thinks I do!” Ken complained. “It started when I drove home yesterday.”

The little man thought carefully and examined Ken a little more closely. There was a faint trace of magical energy clinging to Ken as if he were tied to something directly affected by magic.

“Tell me, Ken,” the little man finally asked. “Do other people think you look like a woman all the time?”

“No, just when I’m in my car,” admitted Ken.

“There’s your problem,” the little man exclaimed and slipped into lecture mode. “You need a new car. The magical energy, working within the parameters of your wish, has focused on your car. All you…”

A new car? And he wouldn’t look like a woman anymore? Sure, he wanted a new car but how was he going to be able to afford it? He could trade the old heap in but that wouldn’t get much in the shape it was in.

“…inherent danger of magical wishes…” continued the little man.

That’s it! He still had two wishes left. He could wish for a new car. But what kind should he get? Toyota’s were always good but Mazda was probably better for your money. Then again, a Mitsubishi would be pretty awesome. Oh heck, it didn’t really matter.

“…and if you just get rid of your old car your magical problems will be done with and there’s no need to make any more wishes,” finished the little man.

“I wish for a new car that won’t make me look like a woman when I’m really a guy! Something Japanese that I can use to blow away everyone I come up against!” blurted Ken.

The little man clasped his forehead with one hand and shook his head slowly.

“As you wish,” he intoned solemnly.

Ken stood there smiling, waiting for his car to materialize. The little man wanted to ask Ken something but could not begin to imagine how to word the question. Eventually another ripple passed through the junkyard, making Ken shudder.

“Was that it? Did I get my wish?” asked Ken enthusiastically.

“That was it,” the little man said.

He was going to start to explain to Ken that things would probably not turn out the way he expected. One look at Ken’s face told him he would probably be wasting his time.

“Your car is in the parking lot,” he finally told him and waved goodbye as Ken ran off without another word. The little man watched until Ken was out of sight then shook his head and disappeared.

Ken rushed out into the parking lot excitedly looking for his new car. He was slightly disappointed to find that sitting where he had parked his old clunker 4-door was a brand new 4-door Toyota instead of the sports car he had intended.

“I guess I should have been more specific,” he said aloud, looking the sedan over in more detail.

Maybe this was not it, he thought. However, his key did open the door and so he gingerly climbed inside and started the car. It ran like a new car. What about the mirrors, he thought. With trepidation, he turned the rearview mirror. If Ken were the type to think things through, he would have realized that he had been granted his wish. He no longer looked like a woman while riding his car. What he did look like was a Japanese kid maybe sixteen years old. He really was not the kind to think things through, though.

“I look like some Asian chick!” he shouted.

His reflection definitely looked like a teenaged girl. Miniskirt, blouse, long hair, and small tits he noted. Cute though, he thought. This was clearly unacceptable. He was going to go right back into the junkyard and complain to the little guy when he saw the manager of the junkyard hang the closed sign in the window. He had forgotten that they closed early on Sundays.

“Shit! I got to look like this till tomorrow?” he said disgustedly and put the car in gear to drive home.

He was not turning heads quite the same way he had been yesterday, he noted thankfully. Still, he was drawing his share of attention. The admiring glances he did draw seemed to agitate him oddly. It was almost as if the looks were pulling him nearer somehow. He managed to fight the feelings off for quite awhile but was caught off guard by a young man maybe eighteen years old, who smiled at him from the crosswalk when he stopped at a red light. Ken surprised himself by smiling back but was even more surprised when he found himself rolling down the window and popping the lock open on the passenger door. The young man sauntered over and stuck his head in the window.

“Hi,” he said with a smile.

“Hi yourself,” Ken said. “You look like you could use a ride.”

“Sure,” the young man said then opened the door and got in. “My name’s Nick.”

“I’m Kayami,” Ken heard himself say.

“That’s a pretty name,” Nick said. “A pretty name for a pretty girl.”

“Thanks, you’re cute too,” Ken heard himself say with a smile, then drove off when the light changed.

“You go to school around here, Kayami?” Nick asked.

“No,” Ken said. “I’m new here.”

Ken did not realize it at first but every time he shifted gears, his hand would drift over and start massaging Nick’s inner thigh. When he did realize what he was doing, he could not seem to make it stop. It was as if he was on autopilot when he drove the car to a secluded spot on a quiet road. He was very surprised when he and Nick passionately kissed but he was outright shocked when a few minutes later his face was buried in Nick’s lap with his head bobbing up and down. It took a few minutes but Ken did manage to clumsily ‘blow’ Nick away in the car.

_____ o _____

“Hello Ken,” the little man said genuinely pleased but slightly surprised to see Ken again.

“Okay, make it stop,” Ken said quickly.

“I’m sorry?” the little man said, not at all sure what Ken was talking about.

“Make it stop!” Ken insisted.

“Make what stop?” the little man asked.

“That thing in the car…” Ken could not bring himself to tell the little man about the five guys he had picked up yesterday and the three he had serviced on the way back here this morning. His jaw ached and he felt slightly nauseous thinking about what he had swallowed these last 24 hours.

The little man studied Ken closely. The faint trace of magical energy still clung to Ken indicating he was still tied to something directly affected by magic.

“This is just a guess, Ken,” he said. “But I would wager that the magic is still centered on your car. I’d have to see it to be sure though.”

“How am I supposed to bring my car in here?” Ken gestured at the junkyard.

The little man looked askance at Ken.

“You do realize that I can leave with you, don’t you?” the little man asked.

“Really?” Ken said very surprised. “I thought you had to stay by that doohickey you came out of.”

“I don’t have to stay with my vessel or doohickey as you call it,” the little man explained. “I can only be re-summoned near my vessel but I don’t have to stay there. Hey, here’s an idea. Why don’t you take my vessel with you?”

“I can do that?” Ken asked.

“Look, I explained all that when we first… Oh never mind,” the little man replied. “Let’s go look at your car.”

Ken scooped up the little man’s vessel and together they walked out of the junkyard and into the parking lot. Once there, the little man looked over Ken’s brand new Toyota very carefully. Occasionally he would chuckle and once he seemed very surprised. Finally, he turned to talk to Ken.

“The magic is definitely centered on the car. That’s the good news. You shouldn’t be affected if you’re not in the vehicle. Your unfortunate use of the term ‘blow away’…”

Why can’t the little guy just say what he meant, thought Ken. Oh man, this was some mess he was in. It sounded like he had no choice. Did that mean he had to suck off every guy he met? He could not believe he had done that once, never mind eight times. About all he could do now was to use his last wish to stop doing it. That would leave him still looking like a girl, though. How was he going to get around that?

“…people admiring you as a girl will trigger your response, and only in this car,” the little man continued.

So, people seeing him as a girl made him want to do those things. All he needed then was some wish that made people see him as a guy again. Then he could keep his car without stopping to pick up other guys all the time.

“…so get rid of the car and there is absolutely no need to make another wish,” the little man finished.

“I wish that people would always see me the way I really was!” Ken blurted out.

The little man threw his hands in the air.

“As you wish,” he said, perhaps a little less solemnly than he usually did.

“Has it happened yet?” Ken asked.

“No, it hasn’t happened yet!” the little man snapped at Ken. “What were you thinking? Haven’t you been listening to me? Magic isn’t some toy to play with on a whim, it requires…”

Boy that little guy could talk, Ken thought. Lucky thing he had had a wish left. Otherwise, he would have been stuck doing that to guys. How gross would that have been? Kind of weird though, how different guys could be different down there. He never would have guessed it. Especially those last few guys. They took hardly any time at all. Maybe he was just getting better at it. That was a disgusting thought. Anyway, this wish should fix it so he could get back into the car without that happening again. It was not a bad car, after all.

“…act of extreme recklessness!” the little man finished.

“So can I get back in the car now?” Ken asked.

The little man pinched the bridge of his nose with thumb and forefinger and fought the urge to scream.

“Sure, knock yourself out,” he said.

Ken got in the car and threw the little man’s vessel in the back seat. The little man got in the passenger side and closed the door. Ken looked in the mirror on the sun visor and saw the same Japanese teenager that had been there before. He noted that she now wore a dark green miniskirt.

‘Hey, the mirror still makes me look like a girl,” he complained.

Just then, a ripple passed through the car causing a powerful shudder to run through Ken’s body.

“Wagh!” he managed. “Dang, that was a freaky feeling. What was that?”

“That” the little man said, “was your wish starting.”

“Oh, good. I think,” Ken said wriggling in his seat.

His clothes felt funny, kind of like they were moving. It made sitting very uncomfortable. His pants were clinging far too tightly and he could feel almost every little contour of the seat through them. They were getting thinner too. For a while there, he thought he could see his leg hairs through them but that seemed to go away. He could definitely see his underwear through them though so he pulled his t-shirt down to cover up. The shirt seemed to stretch further than it should have. He was actually sitting on it. The t-shirt was getting clingy too, especially around the waist and hips. The chest still seemed loose but the sleeves had disappeared. He did not remember his t-shirt being dark green either. It was really starting to cling to his upper thighs now. If he was going to walk around wearing this thing, he was going to have to take short little steps.

Speaking of walking, his shoes looked odd too. Somehow, his sneakers were now a pair of ankle high boots with zippers down the side. They were black boots with pointy toes and some sort of higher heel. It was funny, but they kind of reminded him of women’s shoes. Especially the way his skintight see-through pants ran right inside them instead of over top of them, like they should. The material exaggerated the look. Why they almost looked like pantyhose, he thought. He did a quick double take on how his nylon clad legs looked, especially the way they seemed to run up and disappear under the tight dark green hem of what had been his t-shirt. He reached up to tilt the rearview mirror in his direction. He was dressed exactly like the girl in the mirror.

“Gaaaah!” he yelled. “I’m wearing a dress!”

“That does seem to be what the magic is doing,” agreed the little man.

Ken noticed that his hand still holding the mirror now had long reddish-purple nails. In fact, both hands did. He thought he felt something on his neck and reached up with both hands to discover that he now wore dangling earrings that seemed a close match to the jade earrings that the girl in the mirror wore. Additionally, his hair was long and getting longer. He could just pull it into his field of view to note that it was now jet-black instead of the dark brown it had been.

“This isn’t what I wished for!” he said.

“But it isn’t not what you wished for either,” the little man pointed out. “I told you magic was tricky.”

“Huh?” was all Ken could say.

“Let me try to explain this,” the little man said slowly. “You wished for people to see you the way you really were.”

“Yeah, a guy,” Ken nodded.

“That is what you wanted to happen, I know,” the little man continued, trying not to make things too complicated. “But instead of making all the people see the guy you really were, the magic is making you really be what the people saw. You see?”

“So now I got to dress like her too?” Ken asked, not really understanding what the little man had said.

“It’s a little more than that, I’m afraid,” the little man said.

Just then a gut-wrenching shudder passed through Ken’s body. If he had not been sitting in the car, it might have knocked him over.

“You’re actually going to have to become her, Kayami,” the little man said.

Long straight black hair fell over her shoulders. The front of her dress clearly showed the outline of a pair of small firm breasts.

“Kayami?” she asked. “That’s the name I told the guys I met.”

“That’s your name now, Kayami Nakamura,” he told her.

“Kayami?” she repeated. It seemed right.

“I’m a girl?” she asked touching herself gingerly in several places.

“Yes my dear, you are,” the little man confirmed.

“So I’m stuck like this forever?” she asked.

“You are stuck,” the little man said slipping into lecture mode. “But only until the magical energy has had a chance to replenish in direct proportion to…”

Stuck! Forever a girl. Did she really look like that, Kayami thought looking in the mirror. At least she was cute. If she had to be a girl, that was something. But she couldn’t possibly be a girl. She was wearing a dress, though. She didn’t have a bra on, but the girl in the mirror didn’t seem to have one on either. She grimaced and watched as her reflection did the same. She licked her lips and felt something waxy. I’m wearing lipstick, I am a girl, she thought, as if that proved it.

“…nothing else I can do for you today, so goodbye for now,” the little man finished.

“Huh? Oh, goodbye,” she said but the little man was already gone.

Kayami sat and considered her situation for awhile. Eventually though she started the car, adjusted the seatbelt and shifted the driver’s seat forward before putting the car in gear and driving off down the road. She only got a mile or two before she found herself pulling over in front of some guy waiting at a bus stop. He readily accepted her offer for a ride. Clearly, she was still in the throws of her oral compulsion.

_____ o _____

“Kayami!” the little man said in some surprise. “It’s good to see you again.”

“Hi,” said the girl, showing a great deal of surprise herself.

“It’s been so long that I thought you had fully adjusted to your situation,” he said.

“Huh?” she asked.

“How have you been these last four months?” the little man simplified.

“Not so good,” Kayami admitted. “I got arrested a couple of times.”

“Arrested? What for?” he asked.

“A couple of indecent exposures, one lewd behavior, and two counts of solicitation,” she shrugged.

That did not sound like the Kayami the little man knew and it definitely did not sound like Ken. It sounded more like someone acting under a compulsion. Given what he knew about this case, that could only mean one thing.

“Kayami” probed the little man, “are you still driving that same car?”

“Yeah, why?” she answered.

“And you’re still stopping to pick up guys, aren’t you?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she repeated, looking embarrassed.

“Do you like giving away blowjobs?” he asked carefully.

“Me? No!” Kayami insisted. “But I guess you do get kind of used to it after a while. It’s better if you don’t try to fight it and just relax. I’m getting better at it too, so it doesn’t take nearly as long as it did at first.”

“You do realize, don’t you, that it’s the car that’s making you do that,” the little man said.

“I thought it was the magic,” she said in confusion.

“Yes, it’s the magic but I told you it was centered on… Oh never mind,” the little man said in exasperation. “Tell me, if you don’t like giving blowjobs and you didn’t know it was the car making you do it, then why did you wait four months before calling me back?”

“After I used up my three wishes, I just kind of forgot about you being in the back seat there,” she said innocently.

“You’re telling me that you spent the last four months as a girl with a compulsion to give oral sex because you didn’t know you could get more wishes?” the little man asked incredulously.

“I get more wishes?” Kayami asked in surprise.

“I quite clearly told you that the number of wishes is unlimited except for the requirement of energy regeneration which takes a minimum of…”

Wow! More wishes. Maybe she wasn’t stuck after all! She just needed a wish that stopped her from picking up guys and blowing them. Wishing to be a guy again wouldn’t do it because she was a guy when she started doing it. There must be some wish that could work to end the compulsion.

“…so simply getting rid of the car will end the compulsion allowing you to lead a normal happy life of a girl your age. Your legal problems on the other hand…” the little man lectured.

The car! All she had to do was get rid of the car. She wondered why the little man had not mentioned that before. Of course, that would leave her without a car. You needed a car, preferably a fast one. Not like this car she had now, which was okay for a family car but nowhere near good enough for serious street action.

“…extremely tricky wishes can be. I hope you’ve learned your lesson,” the little man finished.

Kayami smiled prettily and nodded her head in agreement.

“I wish that right now I had a totally hot car instead of the one I now have!” she blurted out still smiling. “And I’ll learn my lesson this time.”

“As you wish,” the little man intoned, wondering if it was possible for magical beings to get migraines.

Both of them stood and waited in silence. The little man could not think of anything to say and Kayami just leaned against her car, smiling and humming some song she knew. Eventually a shimmer passed through her car and it started to disappear. Kayami staggered and nearly fell to the driveway as her support melted away. The little man’s vessel, which had been in the back seat, did fall to the driveway with a loud clatter.

Kayami rushed out and quickly scooped up the vessel.

“So where’s my car?” she asked.

“Patience,” the little man urged. “Your old car must be completely disassembled first so that all of its magical energy can be used to summon the new car.”

As if on cue, an indistinct car-shaped blob began to materialize on the street near the driveway. Kayami actually recognized the emerging shape before it had solidified much at all. It was a 2002 Acura/Honda NSX-R in brand new condition. Its 3.2 liter V6 engine was capable of producing 280 horsepower. Coupled with an all aluminum and carbon fiber body and a 6 speed manual transmission meant that this was one car to be taken seriously.

It was just about Kayami’s dream car.

She almost cooed as she walked around the solidifying sports car trailing her fingers over its lines. This car made her weak in the knees. She actually squealed when she saw that the keys in the ignition were attached to a big letter ‘K’ keychain.

“It’s mine isn’t it?” she asked breathlessly. “This is my car!”

“Don’t jump to conclusions,” cautioned the little man. “The magical energy is still in flux and hasn’t settled in a definite pattern yet.”

But Kayami was already climbing into the driver’s seat. The leather bucket seats held her like a warm hand. She lovingly held the steering wheel for a moment then let her eyes and hands wander over the interior. Caressing the titanium shifter gave her a pleasant warm moist feeling in her crotch, which made her want to squeeze her legs together.

“Come on, let’s go for a ride!” she called to the little man.

“We really shouldn’t until we understand what the magic is creating here,” warned the little man, but he climbed into the passenger seat and closed the door anyway.

“First I better put this someplace safe,” Kayami said holding up the little man’s vessel.

She thought about it for a moment then popped the trunk open and got out with the vessel in hand. She slammed the trunk and returned empty handed.

“You better put your seat belt on!” she laughed, buckling up herself then starting the car.

She squealed the tires as she accelerated down the road. What a car! This was like a dream. Heads turned to watch her drive by and this time they were mostly looking at the car. The best part was that she did not feel a compulsion to stop and pick up guys. Though it might be fun to do it anyway, she thought wickedly and laughed as she kicked it into a higher gear and headed for the interstate.

“Hey little man, how about I wish myself into being a guy again?” she asked.

“You have to wait until this wish is fully granted,” he explained. “There might be enough energy in your body to make the change. It would help if you drove someplace previously unaffected.”

“No problem!” she said taking the onramp without slowing down.

The little man was still studying the flow of magical energy and had a very concerned look on his face.

“What’s the matter?” Kayami asked. “Too fast for you?”

“This? Please, I’ve ridden magic carpets,” the little man scoffed. “It’s just that there are some long-term impacts from this wish that you will want to know about.”

Kayami was enthralled driving the car, a look of rapture on her face.

“Kayami, listen to me!” the little man insisted. “In just a few moments the police will pull you over. When you asked for a really hot car, you got a stolen one.”

“This isn’t my car?” she asked, crushed.

“No,” the little man confirmed. “You’re going to be arrested for stealing this car.”

“Arrested?” she asked a little frightened.

“Yes,” he said. “This on top of your previous arrests means that you’re in a fair bit of trouble.”

“Am I going to jail?” she asked worriedly.

“Some” he admitted, “but you’re a juvenile. It won’t be too bad. You actually set your own punishment when you added that qualifier about learning your lesson.”

“Huh?” she asked, not remembering any qualifier.

“Reform school,” he said. “You’re going to be sent to a reform school until you learn your lesson.”

Kayami blinked a few times quickly as the reality of her situation began to sink in.

“I got more wishes, right?” she asked. “I can get out of this, can’t I?”

“Kayami, think,” the little man told her. “You locked my vessel in the trunk. The police are not going to let you near it ever again. You’ve lost possession. You’ll be stuck like you are for the rest of your life.”

“So I don’t get to keep the car?” Kayami asked fondling the steering wheel.

“No,” was all the little man said.

“And I have to stay a Japanese girl forever?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said.

“Shit,” was all she could think to say.

“On the bright side” the little man said, “at least you got rid of the compulsion. And all of your offences are on your juvenile record. Study hard, learn your lesson, and listen when people talk to you. Think of this as an opportunity to start over.”

“Listen?” she said confused.

“Goodbye Kayami,” the little man said affectionately. “And good luck.”

“Goodbye?” she said, but the little man was already gone.

She heard a siren and saw a flashing blue light in the rearview mirror.

“You know” she said aloud to no one in particular as she pulled the car over to the side of the road, “the little guy could at least have warned me that something like this would happen.”

The End