"...taken her into custody for quarantine."  Morrie looked slightly uncomfortable;  was that a bead of sweat peeking out from his turban?
     There was a chorus of  "What?"s  from us three visitors.  (Interlopers?)   Were we going to be arrested?  Would a genie prison be like a bottle or something?  Good lord,  would we be shrunk and squeezed into a...
        Fortunately,  my dire speculation was interrupted by the studly genie.  "Don't look so shocked,"  he smiled in what was doubtless intended to be a reassuring manner.  "You guys are fine.
But your Petunia is an alien,  so it's necessary to take certain measures to make sure nothing harmful is brought into our world."
He managed to look stern.  "We take care of OUR ecology!"
     That was sort of reassuring,  but what was hapening to poor Petunia?  "Can we at least see her?"  I tried to keep the pleading tone out of my voice.  "And what about the phoenix?  Is he in quarantine,  too?"
      "Oh,  Nathaniel's fine. He would have been given the routine detox procedure;  I'm sure he's home with his family by now."  He paused pensively.  I must say,  though,  it was really nice of Petunia to bring him home."
     "Yes it was,"  put in Minerva briskly,  "And now we need to take her home!  So,  if you'd just take us to her,  please?...No,  no,  that wasn't a wish!"  she squawked,  as Morrie turned into a whirlwind,  sweeping us all up.
       Let me tell you,  it was quite a ride!  I haven't been so scared since
the time...

"...The Forbidden Mountains.  Better not be caught here,  or we'll be in big trouble."   He consulted a weird-looking device.  "Let's see...I think I've got the coordinates right this time--"  Morrie grinned.  Aww--I never noticed before--he had the cutest dimple!
   "Okay,  friends!  Time for another fun ride!"
    "Wait just a minute!"  Oscar interjected.  "I didn't actually enjoy the last one all that much!  Frankly,  it reminded me of the time I lost my lunch on a roller coaster in Six Flags.  Don't you have a taxi,  or a stagecoach,  or a trolley or something?"  He looked miserable.  "ANYthing?"
      Morrie looked crestfallen at the cool reception to his idea of entertainment.  "You didn't like it?  Well,  it's not nearly as much fun,  but I guess we could just teleport!"
   Encouraged by a chorus of eager nods,  Morrie made a sweeping gesture,  and--bam!  We were standing in front of...

He squinted at the four-dimensional map on the teleporter.   "Egypt,
about 2000 BC.  See?  They're still working on the Sphinx.  Oh,  I see what went wrong--"  He fiddled with a knob on the device,  and--wham!
      We were,  to all appearances,  back in the land of the Djinn,  standing in front of a gigantic purple building with towering--well,  towers,  shaped like onions.  I gasped;  if this was another of Morrie's little side trips...
      Minerva was skeptical as well.  "Can this be where poor little Petunia is being held?"  
      I knew what she was thinking:   what agonies,  what tortures is our
hapless friend enduring?  And she hadn't had to bring the phoenix home!  (Nathaniel,  was it?)  She could have just had him drop her off.
But that was our Petunia:  kind,  considerate...
      My reverie was interrupted by Morrie's response:  "Yes,  this is the Quarantine Quarters.  Of course,  there's other stuff here,  too:  offices,
our equivalent of a courthouse,  the dungeon in the basement..."  He glanced at our worried faces.  "But never mind that;  let's go find Petunia."
    Everything in the massive building was ornate,  ostentatious,  made of marble.  An elevator whisked us to the 33rd floor;  we emerged to the ominous sound of screams.  "And don't come back without it!"  someone yelled.  A terrified-looking afreet appeared, running,  and skidded to a halt at the elevator.  Morrie seemed to know him.  "Cecil,
old friend!  What could be the cause of this disruption?"
   Cecil's bulging eyes were wide in his blue face.  "She wanted a fruit smoothie,"  he stammered,  "so I brought it,  though it was difficult!  I had to go to 3 countries to find mangoes in season.  Now she wants
a  'Mocha Frappucino!'  What's a Mocha Frappucino?"  He looked so pitiful,  I had to suppress a smile.
     Morrie frowned cutely.  "Who is this?  Who is terrorizing my friend?"
I was afraid he'd turn into a whirlwind again.
      Cecil made a visible attempt to control his trembling.  "It's that--that
creature,  that harriden,  that vixen they've got us watching!  We can't satisfy her!  She..."
     He was interrupted by a loud screech accompanied by a slamming door.  "Cecil!  Where's my @#%&*  Frappucino?"  And who should appear but our very own  Poor Little Petunia,  looking enraged but adorable in a frilly pink dress that contrasted charmingly with her silky
purple fur.  Her eyes widened when she saw us,  then narrowed.  "Well,  finally!"  she expostulated.  "It's about time you guys showed up!  I suppose traffic was a bitch,  huh?  I see that...
      

"...I'm not so sure I'm ready to leave just yet!"  Petunia ran her fingers through her lovely lavender curls.  "In fact,  I'm not at all sure I want to go back to that sweaty,  bug-ridden jungle at all;  they're very nice to me here."  She paused coyly,  reaching surreptitiously into a pocket in her pink dress.  "But oh,  Auntie M,  I have missed you!  It's been so long!  Come here and give me a hug!"
    Astonished,  I stood frozen as Petunia,  who had never shown me the least physical affection,  careened over and wrapped her long arms around me.  And slipped a piece of paper into my hand.  Oh!
       "Careful what you say,"  she whispered,  "Everything is bugged around here!  Read this when you're alone!"
       "Well,"  she said in a normal tone,  "You all have had a long journey,  and I can't wait to hear about it,  but I'm sure you'd like a chance to rest and freshen  up." 
    "Cecil!"  she said to the cringing afreet,  resuming her imperious tone,  "Find these nice people a couple of guest rooms,  while I take care of a few things.  We'll see each other at dinner,  shall we?"
      Feeling numb and confused,  I followed Cecil to a sumptuous guest suite,  and sank gratefully into a luxurious bed dripping with acres of pink and purple satin.  Before I succumbed to a much longed-for sleep,  however,  I read Petunia's note.  Imagine my shock and amazement as I read...

...what looked like a giant fire ant,  obviously patrolling the hall outside my room.  I knew  Petunia said the place was bugged,  but yuck!!
    Suddenly grateful for the locked door,  I sat back and re-read Petunia's note:   "To whomever has risked so much to try to rescue me--Thank you!  But it will need our combined cunning to outwit these vile creatures.  You will doubtless find yourself locked in your room;  just as well,  for danger lurks in the halls.  I hope I am soon able to explain the entire bizarre situation,  but for now,  don't eat or drink anything they bring you.  Here is something that may help,  if you get a chance to use it."   Now I saw something taped to the note,  previously unnoticed.  It appeared to be a tiny...